I Never
by IamJenbob
Summary: Jane has admitted to herself that she has feelings for Maura, but is unsure whether those feelings are returned. When a drinking game with Frankie, Frost, and others reveals hidden truths, however, Jane seizes the opportunity to finally try to change her relationship status with Maura from 'friends' to 'lovers.' Rated M for the usual reasons: Rizzles (and a little language too)
1. Chapter 1

**AN: This story came about from an idea I had while working on another much longer story. It didn't fit there but I liked it enough to write it up and let it stand on its own. I expect it to come in at 10 chapters, so from my perspective, it's a short story. **

**I own nothing but the plot and, since I don't have a beta at this time, any and all errors, grammatical or otherwise.**

Jane pulled into an empty parking stall and turned off her car. Finding a spot in the parking lot of The Dirty Robber was actually a pretty lucky occurrence on a Friday night. Hopefully, it was an omen for the rest of the evening. She had been preparing for/putting off this night for what seemed like forever, and now that it was finally here, she could use all the luck she could get.

It had been six months since Casey had proposed to her, or more accurately, given her an ultimatum to marry him or else he would return to a war zone.

It had been six months since Jane had told him exactly what he could do with his ultimatum.

It had been six months since she had acknowledged to herself that her decision to turn down that ultimatum had as much to do with her lack of feelings for Colonel Casey Jones, as it did with her very real feelings for Dr. Maura Isles.

Jane had spent a considerable amount of time reflecting on those feelings for her friend over the last several months. Initially, she had been reluctant to admit to herself just how deeply she cared for the medical examiner. It had been even harder to accept that she was physically attracted to another woman, since she had never considered herself to be anything but completely straight. At first, she had tried to convince herself that it was only natural to be drawn to Maura; after all, the woman was breathtakingly beautiful, and quite frankly, the most amazing person Jane had ever met. As time had passed, though, Jane had realized that her feelings were more than just simple admiration for an attractive woman. Maura stirred feelings inside of her that no one, man or woman, had ever made her feel before. When they were together, Jane felt whole. The simple truth was that she was in love with the Maura Isles, and she had been for years.

Jane had decided nearly a month ago that she needed to talk to Maura about how she felt, and find out if there was any chance that Maura could possibly feel the same way about her someday. Unfortunately, every time she had managed to screw up her courage to talk to her friend, something had come along to screw up her plans. '_But not tonight_,' she thought to herself as she stalked purposefully across the parking lot and opened the front door of The Dirty Robber. Korsak was spending the evening volunteering at an animal shelter. Frankie and Frost had gone out drinking with several old friends. She would finally have the chance to tell Maura how she felt without being interrupted. '_Tonight it's just Maura and me…and five guys." _

Jane froze in the entryway of The Dirty Robber. She had expected to see Maura sitting alone in a booth at the back of the Robber. Instead, Maura was sitting at a table with her brother and her partner and three other men. Frankie and Frost were talking with two men she recognized as old friends of Frost's: Marcus, a detective for the NYPD, and his fiancé James, who was a Broadway playwright. Maura, meanwhile, was chatting animatedly with a man Jane had never seen before. '_What the hell is going on here?'_

Frankie looked up and grinned when he caught sight of his sister. "Hey Janie," he called out as he waved his arm. "Over here."

Gritting her teeth as she fought to keep the annoyance she felt off her face, Jane approached the table. "I didn't expect to see you guys tonight," she said evenly.

"Nice to see you too, Jane," James said, a feigned look of hurt on his face.

Jane rolled her eyes. "How've you been James?" she asked, pasting a saccharin sweet smile on her lips.

"Very well, thank you," James replied, a teasing glint in his eyes. "You're looking great…really working that pant suit."

"Leave her alone," Marcus admonished his partner. "You _do _look great Jane. It's been too long."

"You're looking good too, Marcus," Jane said, this time with a genuine smile. "I can't believe you still haven't come to your senses and dumped this idiot though," she said, nodding towards James.

Marcus sighed and shrugged. "The heart wants what the heart wants."

"Plus I'm amazing in bed," James said.

Knowing that if given half the chance, James would happily describe in glorious detail all of the ways that he was "amazing in bed," Jane quickly turned to the man sitting beside Maura. "I don't think we've met."

Always the perfect hostess, even in The Dirty Robber, Maura immediately spoke up. "Jane, this is Alex. He's a friend of James," Maura said, gesturing to the man at her side.

"Don't hold that against me, though," Alex said genially, extending his hand in greeting. "It's a pleasure to meet you Jane."

Jane's mouth spread into a thin-lipped smile when she saw the admiring way that Alex was looking at Maura. He might be a friend of James, but it was clear that Alex did not share James's interest in men. Alex was obviously attracted to Maura, and the last thing Jane wanted at the moment was another competitor for the blonde's affections. She crossed her arms and stared him down for a few moments before speaking "And what do you do for a living, Alex?"

"I'm a professor of English literature at BCU," Alex replied, unaware of the detective's challenging gaze. "Maura and I were just discussing Chaucer's use of irony in the Canterbury Tales."

"Alex has several intriguing insights into _The Pardoner's Tale_," Maura said.

"It sounds fascinating," Jane said dismissively, the tone of her voice making it clear just how "unfascinating" she considered the topic to be.

"Sit down, Jane," Marcus said, gesturing at Frost to fill a mug for her. "We're just waiting for Stephen to get here and then we're heading out. I know he'd love to see you."

Jane considered the request for a moment and then reluctantly acquiesced and sat down in the empty chair beside Maura. Stephen was another one of Frost's friends. She had met him a couple of years ago, and the truth was that she genuinely liked him. The guys would be leaving shortly, and afterwards she would be able to speak with Maura in private. It was a short delay, nothing more.

"So where is Stephen?" she asked.

Frost began to reply but paused when his cell phone chirped, signaling an incoming text. He quickly pulled out his phone and retrieved the message. "Stephen is running late," he announced to the table. "He should be here in about 15 minutes and then we can go."

"So who's designated driver tonight?" Jane asked.

"No one," Frost replied. "We rented a limo so everyone can have fun."

"And no one is sober enough to remember anything incriminating tomorrow," Jane said with a smirk.

"That too," Frankie agreed.

"Since Stephen's running late, I say it's time for a bet," James said. He took a swig of his beer and then got up and walked to the bar.

Alex groaned loudly. "Well at least with only 15 minutes I can't lose too much money."

Frost shrugged. "You know he can't go an entire pub crawl without making a bar bet. At least this way he might get it out of his system."

"What's the problem with his bets?" Maura asked.

"He's too good at them," Marcus said. "He never loses."

James returned to the table and placed a glass filled with water and a single piece of ice in it on the table. He then dropped a long piece of thread next to the glass. "Get the piece of ice out using the thread and you get $20. If no one gets it out within five minutes, you all owe me $10 and we go another round." He looked over at Jane and Maura. "Don't worry ladies. You don't have to play."

"Thanks," Jane replied, clearly amused by the looks of dread on all of the other guys' faces.

"Actually, I'd like to try if you don't mind," Maura said.

Everyone at the table looked at Maura in surprise. "Sure," James said agreeably, "But if you can't do it you'll owe me $10 like everyone else."

"Of course." Maura said.

James shrugged affably and gestured towards the glass. The medical examiner paused to look around the room. After a moment, she caught sight of what she was looking for. "Jane, could you hand me that salt shaker," she asked, pointing to the table next to them.

Clearly confused, Jane reached over to grab the salt and the pepper and handed them to her friend. "Here you go."

Maura took the salt from the other woman. "I don't need the pepper."

"Yeah, but you're always telling me that you have to pass them together and I didn't want to get scolded," Jane replied.

Amusement flickered in the medical examiner's eyes as she looked at her friend. "I knew one day you'd learn proper manners." Turning back to the task at hand, she picked up the thread and placed it in the glass so that the end was lying across the piece of ice. She then carefully sprinkled salt on top of the ice.

James studied the medical examiner thoughtfully. "You've seen this trick before."

"Hmmm? Oh, no, I haven't. It's just simple logic."

"Simple logic?" Alex asked.

"Yes. Pure water freezes into ice at 32 degrees Fahrenheit, but salt lowers the freezing point of water to below 32 degrees. Therefore adding salt directly to the ice cube lowers the melting point of the cube. The salt is in a thin layer, so it melts a thin layer on top of the ice cube, which as a result gets very cold. The melted water is located around the much colder ice cube, so it quickly refreezes around the string."

"Of course," Jane said dryly. "Simple logic."

Marla waited for 15 more seconds and then slowly picked up the thread, lifting the ice cube out of the glass. She handed it to James proudly. "For you."

The rest of the guys cheered loudly, partly to congratulate Maura, but mostly to razz James that he had been bested so quickly. James took it all in stride, however, obviously not too bothered by the fact that he had been beaten. He pulled out his wallet and extracted a $20 bill and offered it to Maura. "Congratulations."

"Oh, I couldn't take your money," Maura said, holding up her hands in refusal.

"Take it," James said with a laugh. "I'd have taken your money if you'd lost."

"Alright, if you insist," Maura said, obviously not entirely comfortable with the situation. Jane knew that Maura hadn't been interested in winning a bet. The medical examiner had simply been piqued by the scientific principle that she suspected lay at the bottom of the trick and had wanted to confirm that she was correct in her assumption. It was, as far as Jane was concerned, just one more thing that made Maura Isles absolutely endearing.

"An appreciation for classic literature and a keen understanding of science," Alex said admiringly. "You are quite the combination, Maura."

The medical examiner looked over at Alex and smiled modestly. "I hardly think I'm anything special."

"Don't sell yourself short, Maura," Jane said, as she did everything in her power not to react to Alex's interest in her friend. "Anyone who can beat James is worthy of all the praise they can get."

Marcus bumped his fiancé with his shoulder teasingly. "I don't remember the last time I saw you lose a bar bet."

James pushed Marcus away with a laugh. "What can I say? I'm used to all you 'Gilligans.' I didn't realize we had a 'Professor' here tonight."

Maura frowned slightly and shook her head. "Actually, James, I'm a doctor, not a professor."

Jane smiled when she saw James' befuddled expression and placed her hand on Maura's shoulder to get her attention. "It's a joke, Maura," she explained patiently. "Gilligan and the Professor were characters on a TV show."

"Oh," Maura said, her cheeks coloring slightly in embarrassment. "I've never seen it."

Jane's smile broadened. "It's ok. It wasn't exactly highbrow entertainment."

"Look, Stephen should be here in ten minutes or so and then we're leaving," Marcus pointed out, "So why don't we just play a drinking game until he gets here?"

"Sounds good."

"I'm in"

"Why not," Jane said with a shrug. She could stand to play nice with the boys for awhile longer, as long as she knew she would have Maura to herself in the end.

Maura frowned. "I don't understand. What's the point of a drinking game?"

"The point is to make everyone drink," Frankie replied.

"But we're already drinking. Why do we need to play a game to keep doing what we're already doing?"

Jane grinned at her friend. "Because it's fun. Come on, Maura. Give it a shot. It's just for ten minutes."

"Alright," Maura agreed, although it was clear she didn't see the point. "What game?"

Marcus thought for a moment. "How about, 'I Never'."

Everyone nodded in agreement and refilled their mugs of beer. "What are the rules?" Maura asked.

"It's simple," Jane said. "Someone says something that they've never done and if anyone else _has_ done it, then they have to drink."

"And what if no one else has done it?"

"Then the person who made the 'I never' statement has to take a drink."

"Ok, I think I've got it," Maura said.

"Why don't you start, Maura?" Frost said.

"Hmmm, alright." Maura thought for a few moments. "I have never arrested anyone."

Maura smiled proudly, obviously thinking that she had come up with the perfect thing to say. Instead, she received blank, someone confused looks from all of the others at the table. "What's wrong?"

Jane hesitated for a moment before replying. "That's not really the kind of 'I never' statement you're supposed to make, Maura."

"I don't understand? I thought the point was to say something that I had never done that others had and they would then have to drink."

"You are. It's just…" Jane trailed off and looked over at her brother and Frost for help.

"You aren't really supposed to say things that you absolutely know for sure about people to try to get them to drink," Frankie tried to explain. "You should say things that you _think_ others have probably done."

"So I'm supposed to _guess_?"

"Not guess exactly," Jane said, as her mouth twitched with amusement. It was obvious that even when playing a game, guessing was not something that appealed to the medical examiner. "The point of the game is to learn things about other people you wouldn't otherwise learn."

Maura's brow drew downward in puzzlement. "I thought you said the point was to make everyone drink."

Jane lost the fight and grinned openly at her friend's confusion. "It is, but the point of _this_ particular drinking game is also to learn things about other people."

"And if possible, to learn _embarrassing_ things about other people," James interjected.

Maura sighed. "I'm sorry. I've never played a drinking game before."

Marcus laughed loudly. "There you go. That's perfect." He took a drink from his glass, and a moment later, everyone else did the same as Maura's words registered with them.

Maura cast a rueful look at Jane, as the detective put down her drink. "So I just revealed something embarrassing?"

Jane shook her head and placed her hand lightly on the blonde's knee. "Naw, you revealed something adorable."

Maura smiled. "Thanks, that's definitely better."

Jane felt a warm glow flow through her at the sight of Maura beaming at her, and for a moment, she even managed to forget about the fact that they were sitting at a table with five other people. It was ridiculous to feel so much joy from such a simple thing, but she couldn't help herself. Being with Maura made her happy; it was as plain and simple as that, and when Maura was gazing at her with such genuine affection in her eyes, Jane knew that there was nothing else in the world that she needed to feel complete. She wanted this closeness; this feeling of belonging with someone; this feeling of Maura belonging with her

The moment between the two women was broken when Marcus cleared his throat. "Jane, you're next."

Giving herself a mental shake to clear her head, the detective said the first thing that popped into her mind. "I've never been to Canada or Mexico."

Maura, James, Frost, and Alex all took a drink. "Nice," Marcus said.

"Thanks," Jane said. "Your turn, Frost."

Frost thought for a few moments. "I've never gone fishing."

Marcus immediately took a drink. Maura began to take a drink, then paused.

Jane tilted her head to the side. "You've gone fishing?"

"I'm not certain. It depends on what exactly the phrase 'gone fishing' means. I have never actually engaged in the activity itself, but I have accompanied my father on his deep sea ocean fishing excursions…"

The detective gestured for Maura to take a drink. "Close enough."

As the ME took a sip of her wine, Frost turned to Frankie. "You're up."

"Hmmm…I've never ridden a horse," Frankie said.

This time there was no delay on Maura's part. An unconscious smile tugged at Jane's lips as she watched her friend take another drink. Although she wasn't aware of Maura ever having been on a horse since they had known each other, riding horses had probably been a frequent part of the medical examiner's life when she had been growing up. Jane could just imagine a teenaged Maura impeccably dressed in her riding outfit, racing around a perfectly manicured course.

"Your turn, James," Frost said.

"I've never been on a cruise."

For a few moments, everyone at the table looked around at everyone else, before realizing that nobody was taking a drink.

"No one?" James asked, obviously disappointed.

"Apparently not," Marcus said. "Drink up."

James grimaced but did as instructed.

Marcus waited until his partner was finished before speaking. "I've never been in a car accident."

Jane hesitated for a moment, not because she was unsure whether or not the statement applied to her, but because she remembered how clearly it did. She had been in a car accident with Maura while investigating a suspect, and Maura had been seriously injured in the crash. At the time, the two had been fighting for weeks. They had reached a point where they were barely able to exchange a civil word with one another, and it had begun to appear to everyone as if their friendship might not be able to survive the pain and hurt they had each inflicted upon one another. When faced with the prospect of losing the best friend she had ever had, however, Jane had finally come to her senses. She had moved past the anger and hurt she had felt and risked her own life to save Maura's. It had been, in the end, the only decision she could have made.

Jane caught Maura's eye and saw that the ME was obviously remembering the circumstances of their car accident as well. Maura covered the hand Jane was resting on her leg with her own and gave it an affectionate squeeze. Jane tipped her glass towards her friend in a silent toast and felt warmth radiating through her chest when Maura responded in kind. Both women then took a drink.

"I've never seen _Titanic_," Alex said.

Everyone but Maura and Alex immediately took a drink. Alex smiled and leaned towards Maura, placing his hand lightly on the back of her shoulder. "I thought for certain you would have seen that with a boyfriend," he said, his voice low and smooth.

Jane's eyes narrowed when she saw Alex touch her friend. While the gesture itself wasn't overly forward, there was no mistaking the expression on Alex's features. It was becoming quite clear just how much he desired the ME, and Jane suspected that it would take very little encouragement on the blonde's part to get him to abandon his friends and spend the evening, and the night, with Maura instead.

Abruptly, Jane pulled her hand from Maura's grasp and shifted slightly away from her friend. She sensed Maura turning to look at her, but she kept her attention firmly fixed on the mug of beer sitting in front of her. She had watched this happen so often that she had long since lost count of the number of times that an accomplished, good looking man had caught the attention of her friend. The truth of the matter was that Alex, a professor of English literature at a major university, was exactly the type of man she would expect to appeal to someone like Maura Isles. The detective couldn't blame her friend for responding to her newest admirer, but that didn't mean it didn't still hurt like hell to watch it happen right in front of her once again.

"I'm afraid I never really watched many movies before the last few years." The ME leaned into the detective fondly, causing Alex's hand to slide off of her. "Jane has been doing a good job of catching me up on the movies I've missed, but we haven't gotten to _Titanic_ yet."

"We won't be getting there at all," Jane grumbled. She wanted to return Maura's show of affection by leaning back into the medical examiner, but her thoughts were too consumed with images of Maura and Alex together to do so. "That was three hours of my life I can't get back. I'm not watching it again."

"Your turn, Maura," Frankie said.

Maura thought for a few moments. "I've never been bowling."

Everyone immediately took a drink. "You're doing good, Maura." Jane said approvingly. She forcefully reminded herself that Alex would be leaving soon and then she'd have Maura to herself. "That's twice now you've gotten everyone to drink."

A shy, proud smile appeared on Maura's lips in response to Jane's compliment, and Jane felt her heart skip a beat at the sight. She knew it was foolish to react to such a small thing, but the truth was that she would do anything to see Maura smile, to know that she had done something to make her friend happy.

"It's your turn Janie," Frankie said.

Jane considered what to say. She was somewhat relieved that so far, everyone had kept things fairly low-key for a game of "I Never." She didn't intend to be the one to change that, especially with Maura sitting beside her. "I've never played soccer," she finally said.

Frost, Alex, and Maura all immediately took a drink. Jane arched an eyebrow as she studied her friend. "You played soccer?"

"A few times in boarding school, until it was determined that I was completely inept and no one wanted me on their team anymore."

Jane frowned. Maura had tried to keep her tone light when she answered, but the detective knew her friend well enough that she could see that the memory of past childhood rejections still stung the medical examiner. Jane leaned in to speak directly into the ME's ear. "Hey, it's a stupid sport anyway," she said. "And no matter what, you're always welcome on my team."

There was faint glint of humor in Maura's eyes as she responded. "Even when you're playing softball?"

A wave of happiness mixed with another emotion that Jane knew better to dwell on at that moment rushed through her when she saw Maura respond to her words. Reminding herself that they were not alone, Jane forced herself to remain still and not move in closer to her friend. "Yeah, even then."

"I've never met a famous athlete," Frost said, putting an end to the moment that the two women were sharing.

Jane turned away from her friend to take a drink, noting as she did that Frankie and Alex were drinking as well.

Maura cocked her head to the side curiously. "Who did you meet?"

"Ted Williams," Jane replied. "My dad took us to an autograph signing when we were kids."

"That must have been exciting."

Jane regarded her friend with amusement. "You have no idea who Ted Williams is, do you?"

"Of course I do. He played left field for the Red Sox for 19 years, although they weren't consecutive years because he took three years off to serve in World War II. He had a lifetime batting average of .344 and was the last man to hit over .400 in a season."

Jane's jaw dropped open when she heard Maura rattle off facts about Ted Williams like a long-time Red Sox fan. "How do you know that?"

Maura shrugged, an impish grin tugging at her lips. "I have a friend who loves the Red Sox. I thought I should learn more about them."

Alex once again touched Maura's shoulder. "I met David Beckham," he said, obviously trying to spark Maura's interest.

"I'm sorry, who is that?" Maura asked.

"David Beckham," Alex repeated, as if the name alone should answer her question. "I met him back when he played for Manchester United."

"They're an English soccer team," Frost supplied helpfully.

Jane leaned close to speak directly into Maura's ear. "Oh, soccer."

A soft giggle slipped past Maura's lips, before she managed to carefully school her features into a semblance of composure. She turned to face Alex. "I'm sure that must have been very exciting for you," she said politely.

"It was." Alex enthused. "I'd be happy to tell you about it sometime."

"I'd love to hear all about it," Maura replied with a small nod.

Jane clenched and unclenched her right hand under the table several times, as she fought off visions of using said fist to punch Alex right in the middle of his annoying, smiling face. "Your turn, Frankie," she said curtly.

"Alright," her brother said. "I have never gotten so drunk that I swore off a particular type of alcohol."

James, Frost, and Jane all picked up their beers. "Rum," James said before taking a drink.

"Tequila" Frost and Jane groaned, and then toasted each other before taking their required drinks.

"Do I want to know?" Maura asked.

"I couldn't tell you even if I wanted to," Jane replied.

James put down his mug. "I've never been to a nude beach,"

Jane groaned inwardly. Leave it to James to be the one who started in with that kind of thing. Before she could say anything, though, she saw Maura raise her glass and take a drink.

"Seriously?" Jane asked.

Maura shrugged. "They're very popular in France."

Jane started to respond, but frowned when she noticed that Alex had also taken a drink and was now regarding Maura with renewed attention. "Have you been to _Cap d'Agde_?" he asked, in his deep-timbered voice. "It's one of my favorite spots."

Jane felt a bolt of pure jealous rage arc through her. Her jaw tightened with the effort it was taking to restrain herself and calmly sit beside Maura. She desperately wanted to physically confront Alex and tell him to back the hell off, but she knew that she had no right to do so. He wasn't actually doing anything wrong. After all, as far as everyone at the table was concerned, Maura was completely available.

A thoughtful expression appeared on Maura's features "Yes, I have, and you're right, it's lovely. Do you go there often?"

"Not as often as I'd like. What about you?"

"As nice as _Cap d'Agde_ is, I've always been more partial to the beaches in _Saint-Tropez_."

"I've never been to _Saint-Tropez_. Perhaps it's time to expand my horizons."

"I'm sure you would love it there," Maura agreed. "It's much more private and secluded."

"Soooo I guess it's my turn," Marcus said. "I have never mooned anyone."

James, Frankie, and Frost all took drinks.

"'Mooned' someone?" Maura asked, not understanding the term.

"Yeah, mooned someone," Jane replied shortly. Hearing the edge in her voice and knowing that Maura wouldn't hesitate to question her about it, Jane forced herself to relax before continuing. "Dropped your pants and showed someone your butt."

Maura frowned for a moment, while she considered Jane's response. "Oh, you mean as part of a sexual encounter or a method of indicating a desire to–"

"No!" Jane said immediately, desperate to cut her friend off before she could continue. "It's a stupid prank…more like a way of taunting someone else."

"Oh," Maura said thoughtfully, before shaking her head. "No, I've never done _that_."

Jane's brow drew downward slightly. "Does that mean you;ve…no…forget it…I do _not_ want to know the answer to that question."

"What question is that?" Maura asked teasingly.

"It's your turn, Alex" Jane said, deliberately ignoring her friend.

"I have never used an online dating service to find a date," Alex said

As Marcus took a drink, Maura looked at her friend expectantly. "You too, Jane."

"What? I've never used the internet to look for a date."

"Yes, you did. Remember the case where the woman was killed outside of _Merch_—"

"That was part of an undercover murder investigation, Maura. And besides, I wasn't even the one who set up the profile."

"Did you get lots of hits, Jane?" James asked with a wicked grin. "Mmm mmm mmm. I bet the ladies were _all over that _when they saw your profile. Just had to get themselves some Jane."

"Shut up, James" Jane replied as she rolled her eyes. "Fine, if it will end this conversation, I'll drink." She took a sip from her beer and then set the mug back down. "Happy?" she asked Maura.

"I'm not unhappy," the medical examiner replied cheekily. Her face scrunched up in thought for a few seconds while she considered what to say next. "I have never engaged in a make-out session in the back seat of a car."

Everyone else at the table took a drink.

Jane looked the medical examiner over speculatively. "You've been to a nude beach, but you've never made out in the back seat of a car?"

"Not in the _back_ seat, no," Maura a mischievous glint in her eyes.

Jane carefully considered her next move. The game had taken a turn and was obviously headed where every game of "I Never" inevitably ended up. She knew that even though the statements in the game were becoming a bit more risqué, it was doubtful that anything would be said that would be embarrassing to Maura. After all, frank conversations about sex never bothered the blonde woman, so it was unlikely that she would be offended by anything that anyone else said. This left Jane in a very interesting position. She desperately wanted to know if Maura could be interested in her as more than just a friend. Jane had been unwilling to explicitly raise the issue in the past for fear of finding out that Maura did not in fact share her feelings. But perhaps she could use the game to safely push the issue a bit.

"All right. I have never been skinny dipping," Jane said. It wasn't the statement she really wanted to try out, but she wasn't ready just yet to roll the dice and see if she was right about Maura's past.

"'Skinny-dipping'?" Maura asked.

"Gone swimming without any clothes on," Jane clarified.

Maura calmly took a drink of her wine, as Alex, James, and Marcus all took drinks as well.

Jane fought back the urge to imagine a naked Maura Isles going for a swim with no clothes on. "I figured you would have gone swimming at the nude beach."

"That was one of the times I 'skinny-dipped,'" Maura agreed, smiling when she saw Jane's eyes widen noticeably in response to her statement. She looked over at Frost. "I believe it's your turn."

"Yeah, uhm, well…" Frost paused for a moment. "Ok, I've never given someone a fake phone number."

Jane and James both took drinks.

"I don't understand," Maura said. "Why would you give someone a fake phone number?"

"To get rid of them," James and Jane said simultaneously, and then grinned at each other.

"I've never lied to someone about my sexual orientation to avoid sex," Frankie said.

James grimaced and then took a drink while Marcus laughed. "You could have just told that guy 'no'."

"I tried. He was just way to into me to give up."

"Drink up," Jane said, motioning towards Maura's glass.

"What are you talking about? You know I don't lie."

"What about Giovanni?"

"I…that…that wasn't a lie," Maura said nervously, noticing that everyone was now looking at her.

"You told him we were lovers to get out of seeing him anymore and having to have sex with him."

"I…somewhat implied it, and he assumed that–"

"Close enough," Jane said. "I drank for _Merch_, so you drink for Giovanni."

Realizing it would serve no point to argue, Maura did as instructed.

"So Giovanni thinks you two are lesbians?" Frankie asked.

"It's a long story, but yeah. Why?" Jane asked, her eyes narrowing suspiciously.

Frankie shrugged. "Just finally understand some of the comments he's made the last couple of years about the two of you."

"Alright, my turn," James said. "I have never watched girl on girl porn."

All of the other guys at the table, including Marcus, took a drink.

Alex looked at Marcus in surprise. "I wouldn't have guessed that."

"I suppose everyone is curious when they're young. My serious lack of interest was the point I realized I had to be gay," Marcus said ruefully. "And since it's now _my_ turn…I have never had sex with someone whose last name I didn't know."

James and Frost both took drinks.

"Seriously?" Jane demanded, looking at Frost.

"In my defense, I _thought_ I knew her last name but I was wrong."

"It's your turn, Alex," Jane said, not wanting to hear anything more about her partner's sex life.

"I have never had sex outside."

Marcus and James smiled at each other, clearly remembering a particular event, and then took a drink. Maura smiled at the obvious affection the two had for each other, and then took a drink as well.

"Why am I not surprised?" Jane asked with a smirk.

"Sexual activities conducted outside can be quite…invigorating."

"Hmmm, so another way to 'expand my horizons'," Alex said teasingly, leaning in slightly closer to Maura as he spoke.

Maura laughed lightly. "I suppose that's another 'to do' for the next time you're in France."

Jane opened her mouth to make a sarcastic remark, then closed it again when she thought better of it. She drew in a deep breath and then let it out again. "It's your turn," she said, pointing to Maura.

"I have never had anyone walk in on me while I was engaged in sexual activities."

Once again, Marcus and James smiled at each other before taking a drink. A few moments later, Frankie and Frost both sheepishly took drinks too.

"I definitely don't want to know," Jane muttered.

Everyone at the table turned to look at Jane, waiting to hear what she would say. The detective carefully considered her options. Time was running out on the game, and there was no guarantee that she would get another chance. If she was going to do this, it was now or never.

Jane took a deep breath. "I've never kissed a girl," she said.

Frankie, Frost, and Alex all immediately took a drink, but all eyes were on Marcus. After a moment, he held up his hands and shook his head. "Nope, the video was enough to convince me."

James sighed and took a drink.

"What?" Frost exclaimed. "You told me you knew you were gay when you were five."

"I did," James said. "But one night in college I got drunk and decided to see if there was something I was missing and it just happened."

Alex laughed. "Well you know, lots of people experiment in college."

As the rest of the table teased James, Jane kept a close watch out of the corner of her eye on Maura. The medical examiner had gone very still when Jane had made her statement, and Jane had no idea as to what was going through her friend's head. Suddenly, Maura picked up her glass and took the last sip of wine from her glass, and then quickly placed the glass back down on the table.

It took every ounce of training that Jane had as a detective to remain calm and not give away the fact that she had just observed Maura "confessing" that she had kissed a girl at some point in her past. She knew instinctively that Maura hadn't simply kissed a young friend at a slumber party because she had been required to by a game of "Spin the Bottle," or "Truth or Dare," nor had the kiss been the result of a night of drinking with girlfriends that meant nothing other than they couldn't hold their liquor. If it had, Maura would have taken her drink openly and shrugged it off the way that James was now dismissing his own "youthful mistake." Maura had kissed a girl because she had wanted to, and Jane strongly suspected it had not been a one-time event.

"Stephen!" James suddenly shouted.

Jane, along with everyone else at the table, looked up to see a tall blond man walking towards them with a huge smile on his face. As he reached their table, he immediately zeroed in on Jane, who stood up to hug him.

"You're looking good, Jane."

"You too, Stephen," Jane replied as she stepped back from his embrace.

"And who is this?" Stephen asked, turning his attention to Maura.

Jane placed her hand on the ME's shoulder. "This is Maura, my best friend."

Maura rose to her feet and extended her hand to the newcomer. "It's a pleasure to meet you Stephen."

Stephen took her hand. "It's a pleasure to meet you too, Maura. So," he said looking back and forth between the two women as the men at the table began to stand up as well. "Are you ladies joining us?"

"Definitely not," Jane said with a laugh. "You guys go have your fun."

"You sure? I could be a great wingman for you, Jane. See if we could find Mr. Right for you, or at least, Mr. Right Now."

Jane began to respond, but paused when she saw that Maura had stepped away and was talking with Alex. The two were far enough away that she couldn't hear what they were saying over the noise of the bar, but she was willing to bet that Alex was asking the ME out on a date. She felt a small wave of relief wash over her when she saw Maura shake her head, causing a look of disappointment to appear on Alex's features. As the medical examiner continued to speak, however, she saw Alex's expression slowly change, growing more and more hopeful with each passing moment, until he finally nodded, smiled broadly, and pulled out what appeared to be a business card to hand to the medical examiner.

"Jane?" Stephen asked. "How about it?"

Giving herself a mental shake, Jane turned back to face Stephen. "Not tonight. I have other plans."

"Alright, your loss. So," Stephen said, looking around at the other guys. "Everyone ready to go?"

"Yes we are," James said immediately. He downed his beer, grabbed his coat, and then began walking quickly for the door.

"What was that about?" Stephen asked.

Marcus laughed and then finished the rest of his beer. "We'll tell you in the limo. Night ladies," he said, nodding towards Jane and Maura before starting towards the door. The rest of the guys quickly followed Marcus's lead, and a few moments later, Jane and Maura found themselves alone.

After a few seconds passed, Maura looked at Jane with a bemused expression on her face. "Well…that was not what I was expecting when I walked in here looking for you tonight."

Jane nodded in agreement, and then looked down at their table. "Looks like you need a refill," she said, her voice betraying none of her thoughts.

Maura's cheeks colored slightly. "Oh, yes, it appears I do."

Jane glanced around for a moment and then gestured towards a small booth near the back of the bar. "Let's sit over there. I'll get us drinks and meet you there."

The ME nodded and without another word turned and walked over to the booth that Jane had indicated. The detective watched her friend walk away, and then crossed over to the bar. As she ordered a beer for herself and a glass of wine for Maura, Jane carefully considered what she wanted do next.

Jane had come to the bar that night with the intention of trying to find out if Maura could possibly have feelings for her and be interested in her in the same way that she was interested in Maura. She was now reasonably confident that at some point, Maura had been capable of being attracted to another woman. However, Jane had no idea if that capacity for attraction was something that had only existed in Maura's past, or if it still remained a part of who she was. Even more concerning, she wasn't certain if Maura was interested in Alex and was planning on seeing him again in the future, or if Maura had just been being her usual polite self when she accepted his card because she hadn't wanted to shoot him down with all of his friends around.

The bartender returned with her order, interrupting Jane's musings. She paid for the drinks, picked them up, drew in a deep breath, and finally turned around. Her decision was made. Her path was clear. By the end of the night, she would know where she stood with Dr. Maura Isles.


	2. Chapter 2

**AN: Hey, thanks for the reviews and the follows. Definitely made my day!**

**Enjoy!**

Maura made her way through the bar to the booth Jane had indicated and sat down to wait for her friend. She brushed off the table and then retrieved her phone from her purse. She quickly scrolled through her contacts until she found the one she was looking for, and then began typing a quick text message. She didn't often try to play "matchmaker" any more, but sometimes the situation just seemed too right to pass up.

As she returned her phone to her purse, Maura looked over to where Jane was standing at the bar, waiting for their drinks. Unbidden, a smile appeared on her lips at the sight of her friend. Even standing still, Jane fairly radiated confidence and power, and Maura could tell by the looks Jane was receiving from the men surrounding her at the bar that the medical examiner wasn't the only one who appreciated what she was seeing. Maura knew that if Jane wanted, she could have any one of those men in her bed that night. Fortunately for Maura, Jane was apparently indifferent to that fact.

Taking advantage of the rare opportunity to study her friend unobserved, Maura allowed her gaze to travel over the other woman's form, her eyes drinking in the detective's raw sensuality. Maura had long since accepted the fact that her feelings for Jane went way beyond those of mere "friendship." On the one hand, this wasn't particularly surprising. After all, Maura had had relationships with women in the past, and Jane was quite possibly the most absolutely gorgeous woman she had ever known. But Jane stirred feelings inside of her that no one, man or woman, had ever made her feel before. When they were together, Maura felt whole. The simple truth was that she was in love with Jane Rizzoli, and she had been for years.

Noticing that Jane was headed towards her, Maura hastily averted her eyes, not wanting to be caught staring. The medical examiner drew in a deep breath to compose herself. '_We're just friends_,' she reminded herself. '_Jane is not romantically interested in you or any other woman_.'

"OK, one slightly chalky cabernet for you, one tasty bottle of Blue Moon for me," Jane said, placing their drinks on the table.

"Thanks," Maura said. She took a sip of her wine and then sighed in contentment. As she watched her friend sit down across from her, Maura admitted to herself that she was relieved that Frankie, Frost and the others were gone. Although she had enjoyed their company, she had been looking forward all day to the chance to spend time alone with Jane tonight. What with work and Jane's family and all of their friends, it seemed like they hadn't had much time just for themselves recently, and Maura had found herself yearning for the chance for the two of them to be alone together.

"So, it looks like it's your turn," Jane said, interrupting Maura's thoughts.

"What?"

"It's your turn. I went last and everyone else is gone, so it's your turn."

"Oh," Maura replied, finally understanding what Jane was talking about. "You want to keep playing?" she asked in mild surprise.

"Why not? I was having fun. Weren't you?"

"I…" Maura hesitated, unsure how to respond. It had been quite a while since the two of them had done something together as innocuous as play a drinking game, and Maura realized that it had been a nice change of pace to relax and do something 'frivolous' for a change. And she _had_ been having fun, at least until Jane had brought up the issue of kissing another woman, at which point her feelings about the game had begun to swing more towards panic than enjoyment. Fortunately, Jane didn't appear to have noticed that Maura had taken a sip of her wine in response to the detective's "I Never" statement. That meant that Jane was still blissfully unaware of the fact that Maura had been interested in women in the past, and by extension, had the potential to be interested in Jane in the present. All in all, she could see no reason not to continue the game.

"Alright," the ME said at last. "I never drank alcohol when I was underage."

Jane inclined her head slightly and then began to take a drink, before pausing abruptly. "Wait. Are you actually telling me that you never drank _any_ alcohol before you were 21?"

"No of course not," Maura replied. "But the drinking age in France and England isn't 21."

"Sneaky," Jane grumbled, before taking a drink of her beer.

"Hmmm, I prefer the descriptor 'cunning'," Maura said, keeping her features composed.

"OK, well, _I've_ never owned a pair of shoes more than six months before I wore them for the first time," Jane said with a slightly superior air.

Maura considered the other woman's statement for a few moments and then smiled. "Neither have I."

The detective's jaw dropped open in disbelief. "Are you kidding me? Maura, I bet if I walked into your closet right now, without even trying I could find at least a half dozen pairs of shoes that you've never worn."

"No, you couldn't," Maura said evenly. "I have tried every pair of shoes on that I own at least once, which means that I have _worn_ all of them at least once."

"Oh come on! That's not what I meant," Jane protested.

Maura leaned back casually against her seat and traced a finger around the rim of her wine glass. "Maybe not, but it still technically counts as having worn them, so you're the one who needs to take a drink," she replied, unable to keep the smugness she felt entirely off her face.

With one last glare of annoyance, Jane grudgingly complied. "Fine, your turn."

Maura smiled at her friend. "I have never been in a fist fight."

"Ok that's not fair!" Jane complained. "I'm a cop. Sometimes when you're making an arrest—"

"I wasn't talking about dealing with criminals on the job, Jane," Maura said sweetly.

Jane's jaw clenched tightly while she choked back whatever sarcastic response was threatening to get out. After a few moments, she took a drink of her beer. "You know, you're way too good at this."

Maura regarded the detective with amusement. "I'm not exactly sure why you're complaining. The penalty is that you're 'forced' to drink beer."

Jane couldn't control her burst of laughter. "The beer helps, but it still feels like I'm losing."

The warmth of Jane's laugh sent shivers down Maura's spine. "Well that's because you are," she teased. "It's not my fault that I know you so much better than you know me."

Jane's expression slowly turned contemplative. "You think so?" she asked.

A strange apprehension swept over Maura, although she couldn't fathom why. There was a definite note of challenge in Jane's voice, but for the life of her, the ME couldn't think of any reason why that should make her feel uneasy. "Well you _are_ drinking more than I am," she said gamely.

"You're right, I suppose I am," Jane agreed, "But it's my turn again, right?"

"It is, unless you want to end this. There's really no reason— "

"I've never spent more than an hour getting ready for a date."

Maura smiled wryly, conceding Jane her victory, before lifting her glass to take a drink. "An hour really isn't all that long to spend getting ready for a date. Choosing the right outfit, doing your hair, getting your makeup just right…it takes time."

A dark chuckle fell from Jane's throat. "I guess I've never dated anyone who was worth going to that much trouble for."

"Surely…" Maura abruptly stopped herself from continuing.

"Yes?" Jane asked softly.

Maura shifted uneasily in her seat and then shrugged, uncertain what to say. Casey was a topic about which the two women almost never spoke. The morning after Jane had told Maura about his proposal, the detective had showed up at her door, informed her that she had told Casey that she couldn't marry him, and then asked Maura if she wanted to go for a run. Maura had assumed that at some point Jane would provide more details about why she had elected not to marry the man she had been dating on and off for years, but Jane had never explained her decision. Knowing that she would be hard pressed to hide her relief that Jane had chosen not to marry Casey, Maura had refrained from bringing the issue up herself. Now however, it was as if he were sitting in the booth right beside them, and Maura fervently wished she could think of a way to get rid of him again.

"It just seems like there would have been someone," Maura finally said.

The detective gazed directly into her friend's eyes for several moments. "Not yet," she said quietly.

Maura swallowed hard to get past the sudden lump in her throat. Once again, the unmistakable feeling that something more was going on between them than a simple drinking game swept over her, but she couldn't quite figure out what it was.

"Your turn," Jane said.

"I…uh…I…" Her thoughts a complete jumble, Maura looked around the room, hoping for inspiration. As her eyes fell on the TV above the bar, she had an idea. "I've never been to a drive-in movie."

Jane turned around to see what had caught the ME's attention. A faint smile played about her lips when she saw the advertisement for a drive-in theater located in Mendon.

"Really, never? Not even on a date when you were in high school?"

"I went to high school in France," Maura reminded the other woman. "I don't know if there's even one drive-in theater in the entire country."

Jane nodded, acknowledging the logic of her friend's statement. "The Mendon Drive-In is a great place to see a movie. We should go sometime."

Maura's brow furrowed slightly in confusion. "I'm not sure I see the appeal of watching a movie while sitting in a car."

Jane had started to take her required drink, but paused when she heard Maura's words. "Trust me. It's fun. I guarantee you'll have a good time."

"Alright," Maura said with a smile. "You've got yourself a date."

Jane lifted her bottle and finally took a drink. "That should be interesting," she said, placing her beer back down on the table. "I've never been on a date with a woman before."

Maura's smile deepened into laughter. "Don't worry. It won't be a date. I'll buy my own popcorn."

"No," Jane said quietly. "That's my statement. I have never been on a date with a woman."

Maura's amusement swiftly died, her body stiffening in shock. She struggled to process what Jane had said, but she was too stunned to think cogently. "What?" she finally managed to rasp out, more to buy herself time to come up with a response than because she was unclear about what the other woman had just said. The ME abruptly realized that Jane must have seen her drink earlier when the detective had said that she had never kissed a woman. Maura could think of no other explanation for her friend's statement.

"I said that I have never dated a woman," Jane repeated patiently. "Am I drinking again, or are you?"

For one brief, crazy moment, Maura actually considered trying to lie, or at the very least, deflect. She tried to think of any other term that could conceivably be used to describe the romantic liaisons that she had shared with various women over the years. Unfortunately, she could think of no justifiable reason to refer to them as anything other than exactly what Jane had just asked about. They had been dates.

Lowering her eyes, Maura picked up her glass and took a sip of her wine.

An almost palpable feeling of tension seemed to form between the two women when Maura set her glass back down on the table. Jane finally cleared her throat, breaking the silence. "Recently?"

Maura refrained from pointing out that the time frame "recently" was a vague term at best, and depending on the circumstances, could refer to anything from days, to weeks, to months, to years. Since it had in fact been years since she had been on a date with a woman, though, she felt confident that her answer was truthful in the context in which Jane was asking her question. "No, not recently," she replied.

Jane nodded, accepting Maura's response. "So in high school then?"

"Yes, I dated girls when I was in school." It wasn't a lie; she had dated girls when she was in high school. It wasn't the only time, of course, but it was still the truth.

Several more seconds passed in silence.

"So it _wouldn't_ be a date?"

It took a moment for Maura to realize that Jane had returned to the original issue. She lifted her gaze and studied her friend for a few moments, but the expression on Jane's face was completely neutral, revealing nothing of her inner thoughts. Maura bit her lip, uncertain what answer the detective was looking for. "We watch movies together all the time," she said at last. "Watching a movie in a car wouldn't make it a date."

"You're right," Jane agreed. "That's not what makes something a date."

Maura stared at her friend, desperately trying to interpret the detective's body language to figure out what the other woman was feeling, but no matter how hard she tried, she could conclude nothing. "Jane—"

"It's your turn, Maura."

The medical examiner was torn between trying to continue the game as if nothing were wrong, and trying to end the game before any real damage could be done to their relationship. Making the decision more complicated was the fact that she couldn't read Jane at all. As much as she might want to, it was too much to allow herself to believe that Jane could be happy about her admission. She couldn't tell, though, if the other woman was upset by her revelation or unbothered by it.

"I never had to serve detention when I was in school," Maura blurted out. She groaned inwardly. That had sounded weak and stupid even to her own ears, but she couldn't think of anything else to say.

Jane looked at her friend, her eyebrow arched in surprise, obviously not expecting Maura to have gone with something so mundane. After a few moments, she raised her bottle and took a drink.

"For the fist fights?" Maura asked, partially to fill the silence, and partially because she wasn't certain she was ready to hear Jane's next "I Never" statement.

"Is that a guess?" Jane asked, the corner of her lips quirking upwards slightly.

"More like a well thought out hypothesis," Maura replied, gaining confidence from Jane's nonchalant attitude. The detective was smiling and relaxed, and there was a faint glint of humor in her eyes. She certainly didn't seem in any way troubled by Maura's revelation that she had been interested in women in the past.

"Sometimes it was for fighting," Jane agreed. "But I'm not sure you gave me a fair 'I Never' statement. Did they even have detention at your fancy French boarding school?"

"Of course," Maura replied. "But—"

"But you were a good girl when you were in high school," Jane said, her tone completely sincere.

Maura started to reply, but then paused to consider her friend's words. Jane was referring to her as having been a "good girl" when she was in high school, during a period of time that they had just established was marked by Maura dating girls. Surely if Jane had a problem with that, she wouldn't consider Maura to have been a "good" girl.

"'In high school'?" Maura said lightly, trying to make a joke to ease her own discomfort. "Does that mean I'm not a 'good girl' now?"

"Actually," Jane said, as she reached out and caught Maura's hand in her own, "I would say that you are the best person, man or woman, that I have ever known. I am incredibly lucky to have you in my life, Dr. Isles."

Maura felt a fluttering in the pit of her stomach as her mouth went dry. "I'm lucky to have you too, Detective Rizzoli."

Jane's mouth curved into an unconscious smile. "So," she said, as she bent her head to study their joined hands. "Where did you go on dates when you were in high school?"

A wave of nervousness again swept over Maura, but this time it was tinged with an awareness that Jane was not in any way bothered by the fact that she had been involved with girls in the past, that Jane instead actually seemed intrigued by that fact. "Oh, you know, shopping, museums, nice restaurants…things like that."

Jane nodded thoughtfully. "I don't think I would have enjoyed that much. I guess I was lucky."

"Why is that?"

"I was never interested in girls when I was in high school."

'_Never interested in girls_ _when I was in high school_.' The detective's words played over and over in Maura's head like a broken record. Jane could have simply said that she had never been interested in girls, but she had instead qualified her statement and technically made it applicable only to the years when she was in high school. Ignoring the fact that Jane's statement was a violation of the rules of the game, at least as far as she understood them since the fact that Maura had dated girls in high school almost certainly meant that she was also interested in them, the ME took a drink of her wine. It seemed a far easier choice than to argue about the issue, especially while she was desperately trying to decide if there was any hidden meaning behind Jane's choice of words.

"It must have been a nice advantage," Jane mused.

"What's that?"

"Attending an all-girls school and being attracted to girls. They must have been falling all over you."

"Not really," Maura said, her mouth twisting into a grimace as less than fond memories filled her head. "Even when someone did ask me out, we almost never went on a second date. In fact…I never went to prom."

Jane started to respond, and then stopped when Maura's words registered with her. She took a drink and then set her beer back down on the table. "That doesn't seem possible. Were you just a really late bloomer?"

Maura shrugged negligently. "No, my looks when I was a teenager would have been considered to be above average when compared to the accepted standards of beauty by which women are judged."

"Then how were you not beating girls off with a stick?"

Maura's brows drew downward in a frown. "Why would you think that I would've attacked my classmates with a stick?"

Jane simple stared at Maura for a few moments, before a grin began to tug at the corner of her lips. She brushed her thumb lightly over the back of Maura's hand in a soothing motion. "It's just an expression. It means that I'm surprised you didn't have so many girls chasing after you wanting to date you that you didn't have to fend them off."

"Oh," Maura replied, and then shrugged dismissively. "Whether I was considered attractive or not, I was still "Maura the Bore-a," the ME replied, doing her best to keep the pain of the constant rejection she had suffered in high school at bay, but only partially succeeding. "Not a lot of girls were interested in being friends with the biggest misfit in school, let alone date her."

"Then they were idiots," Jane said gruffly, tightening her grasp on Maura's hand. "Anyone would be lucky to date you."

Maura felt a strange hopefulness filling her. Jane hadn't phrased her statement to apply only to the past, but to apply to the present as well. "Anyone?" she asked meaningfully.

"Yeah, anyone," Jane said, the tone of her voice making it clear that she meant what she was saying. The detective fell silent for several moments, and then sighed softly. "I wish I had known you back then. I wish I could have been the friend you needed so that you wouldn't have been so alone."

"You really think we would have been friends if we'd known each other in high school?"

"Of course. Don't you?"

Maura shrugged. "I doubt it. Someone like me wouldn't have been friends with something like you."

Jane stiffened in response to Maura's words and promptly disengaged her hand from the medical examiner's. "Because "straight A" geniuses aren't friends with dumb kids who get detention?" she asked with an unmistakable edge.

Maura's mouth dropped open in shock. "No! God no, Jane, how can you even think I would mean something like that? I just meant…" Maura's voice trailed off and she lowered her head, while she tried to find the words to explain herself. "God, I'm still as awkward as ever," she said ruefully.

Taking a deep breath, Maura hesitantly covered Jane's hand with her own, and was relieved when the other woman didn't try to pull away from her. "I should have phrased that differently. I should have said that someone like _you_ wouldn't have wanted to be friends with someone like _me_. You would have just thought I was weird."

"I think you're weird now and we're still friends." The detective's voice was disgruntled and somewhat annoyed, but her words were tempered with a smile.

Maura lifted her eyes to meet Jane's. She searched the other woman's face, trying to read the detective's thoughts. "So you really think we would have been friends if we'd known each other in school?"

Jane held Maura's gaze, laying her emotions bare for the medical examiner to see. She entwined her fingers with Maura's and then squeezed lightly. "I can't imagine knowing you and not being your friend."

A tremulous smile appeared on Maura's lips. "Neither can I," she whispered.

The two women fell into a companionable silence, each lost in her own thoughts. Finally, Maura straightened back up and looked at the detective. "It's your turn," she said quietly.

"I guess it is," Jane agreed. The detective released her grip on the ME's hand and rocked back in her seat. She began to speak but then paused. She looked down at her bottle of beer in silence, obviously trying to decide what she wanted to say. Finally, she exhaled heavily and looked back up again.

"I have never been afraid to tell my best friend that I was attracted to her."

Strangely, Maura wasn't particularly surprised by Jane's statement. It was, after all, the inevitable end result of where they had been headed ever since Jane had realized that Maura had been attracted to women in the past. Jane needed to know whether or not Maura was attracted to her now. The medical examiner was being asked to be honest about her feelings for the detective, and she knew she had exactly two choices.

She could take a drink, and in doing so confess to Jane that she had feelings for her that went well beyond anything that could be considered "appropriate" for one friend to have for another.

Or she could not take a drink, end up covered in hives within seconds, and essentially reveal the truth anyway.

Maura closed her eyes briefly to gather her courage and then picked up her drink. Locking eyes with the detective, she calmly drained the rest of the wine from her glass.

Jane said nothing as she watched Maura finish her drink and then place the glass back on the table.

For several seconds, both women simply stared at each other. Then, still without saying a word, Jane picked up her bottle, drank the rest of her beer, and then placed the empty bottle back down on the table beside Maura's empty glass.

It took every ounce of control that Maura possessed not to react when she saw Jane finish her beer. This situation hadn't been covered in the original rules of the game, but she understood the implication of Jane taking a drink in response to her own statement that she had never been attracted to her best friend.

"You're out of beer," Maura eventually managed to say, relieved that her voice sounded more composed than she felt.

"And you're out of wine," Jane pointed out calmly, but her eyes were dark with emotion.

"We can't keep playing without drinks."

"I can get us another round if you want to continue," Jane offered.

Maura hesitated for a few moments, weighing the options. "I have better wine and plenty of your beer at my place," she finally said. "We could go back there."

Jane smiled, sending Maura's pulse racing.

"I thought you'd never ask."


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N Hey thanks for all the reviews and follows. I'm actually kind of stunned by all the follows as a matter of fact, but I'm glad to know people are enjoying the story.**

**As always, I welcome any and all feedback, and hopefully I should have Chapter 4 up by the end of the week.**

Jane added a couple small pieces of wood to the nascent fire that was burning in Maura's fireplace. The medical examiner had started the fire when she had arrived home, and had asked Jane to take over for her when the detective arrived a short time later. Once Jane had assumed fireplace duties, the blonde had opened a bottle of wine, poured a glass for herself, and then left the glass on the counter to breathe while she went to check on her tortoise, Bass.

Jane's delay in arriving at Maura's had in fact been intentional. She had wanted to give herself as much time as possible to review everything that had been said, and hadn't been said, at the bar, before she faced Maura again. Unfortunately, there hadn't been nearly enough time for her to sort everything out, and the detective was finding herself more than a little nervous. Jane wasn't a fool. She and Maura had established that they were attracted to each other, and she knew that Maura certainly hadn't invited her back to her place so that they could watch a movie together. And that was where the problems began.

The first and most obvious issue was that Jane had never been with a woman before, and the thought of crossing that boundary with Maura both excited and terrified her. Even though she knew her friend wouldn't be expecting her to be some kind of amazing "sex goddess" in the bedroom, the detective was still worried that she was going to be so awkward and incompetent and blundering that she would ruin everything. She knew at best, her previous partners would probably describe her as being "ok" in bed, and in all honestly, her shortcomings in that area of her relationships had never really bothered her all that much. She knew how important sex was to Maura, though, and the last thing in the world Jane wanted to do was disappoint her. Unfortunately, the detective was growing more worried with each passing minute that that was exactly what was going to happen. There was, however, a much larger complication that Jane was currently facing.

Even though the detective was nervous about having sex with a woman for the first time, she was confident about her feelings for the medical examiner, and she knew that she was ready to take this step. Her real dilemma was that she had no idea how deep Maura's feelings ran for her. She was completely uncertain as to whether Maura saw tonight as being the first night of a new stage in their relationship, or simply a single, stand-alone event that wouldn't necessarily ever be repeated.

While Jane wasn't opposed to the concept of casual sex in general, she wasn't interested in having that kind of relationship with Maura. She was in love with Maura, and she didn't want this to be a way for the two of them to scratch the occasional itch when they couldn't find someone else to scratch it for them. There was just too much of a risk that that kind of arrangement would adversely affect their friendship, and Jane wasn't willing to risk their friendship over a casual hook up. She didn't need a declaration of undying love from the medical examiner, or a promise that they would always be together. Again, she wasn't a fool, and the detective knew that there was no way that either one of them could make such a guarantee at this point in time. But the one thing she did need was to know that Maura was as committed to her as she was to Maura. She needed to know that Maura saw this as more than just a random fling that could easily be forgotten. She could handle being in love with Maura and not being _with_ Maura. But she couldn't take being in love with Maura, being with Maura, and Maura being with someone else too.

Jane's mental ruminations were abruptly interrupted by the sound of light jazz coming through the medical examiner's home sound system. A few seconds later, Maura appeared from around the corner. "Bass ok?" Jane asked.

Maura nodded and walked over to open up the fridge. "He's fine."

Jane rose from her crouched position in front of the fire and watched Maura take a beer out and then open it. "Did he enjoy his walk?"

For a brief moment, Maura frowned, before the realization that Jane was making a joke struck her. "As a matter of fact he did," she replied.

Maura lowered the lights in the kitchen slightly, and then picked up her glass of wine and walked into the living room. Jane took a few moments to move the fireplace screen into place and then studied the fire. Confident that it would be awhile before any more wood would needed to be added, she turned to face her friend. Maura was sitting in the middle of the couch, waiting for her patiently, the glow of the fire illuminating the medical examiner's face. Jane knew in that instant that she had never in her life seen anyone more breathtaking that Maura Isles, and she felt her heart swell with feelings she didn't even know she was capable of.

"Jane?"

Maura's soft voice calling her name immediately brought the detective back to the present. Realizing that she had been staring, Jane blushed deeply. "Sorry," she said sheepishly.

"It's ok, you're allowed to look at me," Maura teased gently. "But why don't you do it from over here?"

Not needing to be asked twice, Jane quickly moved to join her friend and sat down to the right of the medical examiner close enough that they were just touching. Maura handed Jane's beer to her and then leaned lightly against the detective. Jane wrapped her arm around Maura's shoulders and allowed her hand to rest on the medical examiner's upper arm.

The two of them had of course sat on Maura's couch like this before, Jane drinking beer and Maura drinking wine, usually while watching a movie, although occasionally just enjoying a cozy fire as they were now. But those times had officially been completely platonic, and this…well this was most definitely not platonic. Jane was warming and melting inside, and when Maura snuggled up a little closer against her, the detective sighed in absolute contentment.

"So, should we keep playing now that we have drinks again?" Maura asked softly.

Jane considered the question for a moment. Continuing the game would give them an easy way to talk to each other without addressing the actual reason they had come back to the medical examiner's place. As much as she wanted Maura, Jane still wasn't quite ready to take that step. "Sure. I went last so it's your turn."

Maura thought for a few moments, her fingers lightly tapping the side of her wine glass. "I have never played poker."

Jane smiled, and took a drink, imagining as she did so the medical examiner sitting at a table playing cards with Korsak and his buddies, drinking a beer and smoking a cigar. "You mean you've never played for money, or you've never played at all?" she asked curiously.

"I tried once when I was at boarding school, but it's impossible to play poker when you can't bluff without breaking out in hives. I gave up before the first hand was over."

Jane couldn't stop herself from chuckling at the thought of a hive-covered Maura trying to convince her classmates that she had a winning hand. "Ok…I've never gone scuba diving."

Maura inclined her head slightly and then took a drink. After a moment, she turned to look over at the detective, a faintly suspicious expression on her face. "Haven't I told you about going scuba diving when I was in college? Did you already know about that?"

"The point of the game is to ask about things I don't know, remember?"

"I do. However I also know that you aren't above employing duplicitous methods to win."

Jane gasped. "Are you accusing me of cheating?"

"Perhaps, and I notice you still haven't answered my question."

"Yeah, I noticed that too," Jane said with a smirk.

Maura's eyes narrowed slightly. "I have never eaten bacon as a snack or as a dessert."

Jane grinned broadly, and then unabashedly took a long pull from her bottle.

Maura sat up and shifted slightly away from the detective so that she could face her directly. "How can you possibly be proud of that?" she asked in disbelief.

Jane shrugged. "I will never be ashamed of eating as much bacon as I can whenever I can, and do you know why?"

"No. Why?

Jane's grin widened even further. "Because…I have never doubted the amazing perfection of bacon."

Unwilling to give her friend the satisfaction of making her smile, Maura's lips pursed into a thin line. "Devious," she said, before taking a drink.

Jane's brow furrowed slightly in thought. "Hmmm, I prefer the descriptor 'cunning'."

Unable to control herself any longer, Maura laughed, and Jane felt her heart skip a beat in response. There was just something so incredibly beautiful about the blonde when she let herself go and showed her carefree side. The detective lifted her hand to cup Maura's cheek and allowed her thumb to stroke the soft skin. "I love seeing you laugh," she murmured.

Maura's cheeks colored slightly. She reached up to capture Jane's hand in her own and then brought it to her lips to press a soft kiss against the knuckles. She lowered their joined hands to rest against her leg, interlacing their fingers as she did so. For a few moments, Maura simply stared at their hands in silence, and Jane began to wonder if she had decided to abandon the game. The thought sent a momentary flash of worry through her, and she drew in a deep breath to calm herself. Jane wanted to do so much more than just hold hands with her friend, but she wasn't ready to go any further yet. The detective needed to clearly establish exactly what the nature of their relationship would be if and when the two of them took the next step. Try as she might, though, Jane couldn't find the courage to actually raise the issue and ask Maura directly for her thoughts.

"I have never met anyone who had the same name as me."

Jane exhaled quietly in relief when Maura continued the game. "Hmmm…so how do I interpret that 'me'?" she asked thoughtfully.

"What do you mean?" Maura asked, not understanding the other woman's question.

Amusement sparkled in Jane's eyes. "Well you could have meant 'I have never met someone who had the name Maura,' in which case, you need to drink, because I have never met another 'Maura' either. On the other hand, you could have meant, 'I have never met someone who had the same name that I have', in which case I would need to drink, because I've definitely met other 'Janes'."

Maura smiled and squeezed her friend's hand affectionately. "I have never met someone with whom I share the same name."

Jane grimaced in mock frustration. "Damn, I thought I had you there."

Beautiful hazel eyes met with gentle brown ones. "Oh I think you definitely have me," Maura replied softly.

Jane cleared her throat, pretending not to be affected by Maura's statement, but she couldn't ignore the tingle of excitement that was rushing through her. She waited for her quickened pulse to subside before speaking. "I have never watched a movie that wasn't in English."

Maura took a sip of her wine and then moved to resume her original position sitting beside Jane.

The detective once again placed her hand on Maura's upper arm while the medical examiner shifted her glass to her left hand so that her right hand was free to rest on the detective's thigh. Jane hugged her friend to her, reveling in the closeness. "I will never understand how you can do that," the detective mused.

"Do what?" Maura asked absently, her gaze focused on her fingers as they drew invisible patterns across Jane's thigh.

"Read a movie."

Maura glanced over at her friend. "Read a movie?" she asked, clearly confused by Jane's comment.

"Yeah, you know, read the subtitles while you're trying to watch the rest of the movie," Jane replied, before something suddenly clicked in her mind. "And you've never needed to read the subtitles, have you?" she asked, her mouth twisting into a wry grin. "Because you've always understood the other language."

Maura turned back around. "Oh, yes, but I've only seen Spanish, French, and Italian foreign language films," she said.

Jane laughed lightly. "Oh, well in that case, it's not impressive at all."

Maura sat quietly for several moments, her brow furrowing as she considered what to say. "I never skipped out of a class when I was in school," she finally announced.

Jane immediately took a drink.

"Did you get caught?"

"Once...I got a week's worth of detention."

Maura grinned and shifted her position so that she could lay her head against Jane's shoulder. "Did you ever skip class again after that?"

"Of course," Jane replied. She dropped her arm and wrapped it around the blonde's middle. Tightening her hold on the medical examiner, she allowed her chin to rest against the top of Maura's head. "I was just more careful after that not to get caught."

"Cutting classes, drinking underage, getting into fist fights…You had quite the misspent youth, Detective Rizzoli. It's a wonder you became a police officer and not a criminal," Maura teased, her hand lightly stroking her friend's leg.

A soft chuckle escaped Jane's lips. "Alright, my turn. I have never read Shakespeare just for the fun of it."

With a resigned sigh, Maura sat up and took a drink. She turned to look at her friend. "I'm noticing the beginnings of a theme here," she grumbled.

"And what theme is that?" Jane asked innocently.

"That I'm a nerd."

Jane's lip quirked when she heard Maura Isles of all people using the word "nerd." "Maybe you are," she said, "But I like that you're an amazing, quirky person with a name no one else has and who watches foreign films and doesn't need the subtitles. Let's face it, reading Shakespeare just because you want to is just one more interesting thing about you. I'm guessing that if I'd asked that same question at the bar tonight with the guys, you'd still have been the only one who would have taken a drink."

A slight frown crossed Maura's face, before she smiled again and then gracefully rose to stand. "And that's why you should never guess," she said, as she walked around the couch to the desk on the other side of it. "Because you…would be wrong," she continued, opening her purse and taking out her phone.

Jane watched in confusion as Maura's thumb began moving across the surface of her phone. "What are you doing?"

Maura glanced up briefly at her friend before returning her attention to her phone. "I got a text when I was driving home, but obviously I couldn't look at it then. I assume I know what it's about and it's nothing critical, but _I _don't want to guess," she said, a grin appearing on her face.

"Oh," Jane replied, not knowing what else to say. She watched in silence as Maura read through the text and then began to send what Jane assumed was a response. She wasn't really surprised that Maura would interrupt what they were doing to look at a text message. After all, they both had open cases that they were working on at the moment, and urgent, time-sensitive information about those cases could be sent to either one of them at any time. She was a little surprised, though, that Maura wasn't saying anything about who the text was from or what it was about. She wasn't comfortable, though, asking her friend about it if the medical examiner wasn't going to volunteer the information on her own.

As she continued to watch Maura type out her text message, a thought suddenly occurred to the detective. "So wait, who else tonight would have had to take a drink over reading Shakespeare for fun?"

"Alex," Maura replied as if it should be obvious, gesturing slightly with the phone as she did so. After a few more seconds, Maura put her phone down on the desk and walked over to check on the fire.

A frown appeared on Jane's face. The way Maura had been looking at her phone when she had answered Jane's question, as well as the way that she had motioned with the phone when she had said Alex's name, seemed to imply that it was Alex she was texting. But why the hell would Maura be texting Alex, especially now?

Still unwilling to actually ask Maura directly about her text messages, Jane decided to stick with the other issue. "How do you know that Alex reads Shakespeare for fun?"

Maura shrugged as she used the poker to move one of the burning logs into a better position, increasing the flow of air around it. "We were talking about it before you got there," she said. "And I know you're going to say he's an English professor and he reads Shakespeare for his job, but he loves his job, so it's for fun too."

Jane simply gaped at Maura in astonishment. '_Seriously? _That's_ what you think I'm going to say?' _

Jane abruptly found herself assaulted by the memory of the way that Alex had been touching Maura in the bar, the obvious desire on his face every time he looked at her, the suggestive tone in his voice when he spoke to her. A massive wave of jealousy rocked through her, nearly threatening to overwhelm her, and she desperately struggled to push it back down. _'Maura is here with me,' _she reminded herself. _'She wants me. I know she wants me._'

As she repeated the words over and over to herself, Jane felt herself beginning to relax. Unfortunately, even as she did, a nagging voice began taunting her from a dark corner of her mind. '_She only wants you for _tonight_ because Alex wasn't available. She may be attracted to you, but that doesn't mean that she has any interest beyond a meaningless hook up.'_

Still fighting for control, Jane clenched her fists tightly and drew in several deep breaths. "I thought you were talking about the Cadbury tales," she managed to get out from gritted teeth.

The detective's voice was far from normal, but distracted by the fire, Maura didn't notice. "_Canterbury_ tales," Maura said, "And you're right, we were. But when I first sat down, we talked about Shakespeare. Alex has a fascinating perspective on _Othello_." The medical examiner crouched down and placed two small pieces of wood on the fire before continuing. "_Othello_ is probably my favorite of all Shakespeare's tragedies. I was always intrigued by Iago…his motives for betraying Othello are never clearly revealed and yet he seems–"

"Oh my god, Maura, please stop," Jane blurted out, desperate to end the conversation about Alex and his wonderful insights into some stupid play she had never read and knew nothing about. "I went to community college, remember? I have no idea who Othello and Igor even are."

"Othello and _Iago_," Maura said, looking over her shoulder at the detective.

"Whatever," Jane replied tersely.

Maura stood up and repositioned the fireplace screen in front of the fireplace. She returned the poker to the stand holding the other fireplace tools and then cocked her head to the side while she studied her friend worriedly. "Is something wrong? I thought you said that you liked that I read Shakespeare."

Jane knew she was overreacting and that she needed to calm down, but it wasn't easy to do when she could so clearly see in her mind's eye the way that Alex had been looking at Maura in the bar. She drew in a slow, deep breath and forced herself to smile at her friend as reassuringly as she could manage. "I do. It's just, not now, ok?"

"Ok," Maura said hesitantly. "So…I guess it's my turn?"

Jane nodded. Everything was going to be fine. She was being ridiculous. "Yeah, your turn."

"I have never dated a police officer," Maura said with a playful grin, her eyes dancing with promises of things to come.

Jane felt her earlier worries drain away. The way Maura was looking at her…how could she possibly have doubted how the medical examiner felt about her? Smiling back at her friend, Jane took a drink.

Maura glanced down at her hands and grimaced slightly. She held them up to show Jane how dirty they were and walked into the kitchen to wash them. "Who was it?"

"Some guy I knew back when I was still working vice," Jane replied. "He left BPD before I met you."

Maura began to dry her hands. "Was it something serious, or just a hook up?"

Jane's blood instantly ran cold. "A hook up?" she asked, doing everything in her power to keep her voice even.

"That's the right term isn't it?" Maura asked. She returned the hand towel she was using to its hanger and began walking back towards the living room. "I thought that's the phrase you used when we were working on the _Merch_ case."

Jane's thoughts were in a whirl. Why was Maura asking about whether Jane had engaged in a casual hook up with a co-worker in the past? Was it her way of letting Jane know that that was all she wanted from the detective? "It's the right word," Jane began slowly, "But–"

The detective's words were cut off as Maura's cell phone rang, indicating that she had received another text message. Having just reached the desk where the phone was sitting, Maura automatically reached down to pick it up. Jane watched in silence as the medical examiner retrieved her newest message and then began to read it. After a few moments, Maura began to laugh.

"What is it?" Jane asked, unable to resist asking about Maura's message this time.

"Just a text from Alex thanking me," Maura replied with a smile. "At the end he wrote 'Come, come, good wine is a good familiar creature, if it be well used'."

Jane didn't return the other woman's smile. "Let me guess, _Othello_?"

Maura nodded absently. "Yes, they must be having a good time. 'Oh, wine is the devil!_'_" she murmured as she continued to type. "You know, if things work out the way I think they will, I'll get another chance to finish that conversation with him about Iago," she said, a trace of excitement in her voice. "Some people believe that he was literature's first sociopath." Maura finished her text and placed her phone back down on the desk. "Now, where were we?"

In that one instant, Jane's fears, doubts, and insecurities all combined to become a scalding jealous fury. Her hold on her self-control completely snapped and she rose to her feet as if propelled by an explosive blast.

"Seriously?" she demanded, her voice inflamed and belligerent. "Where _were_ we? What the fuck was that?"

Completely caught off guard by the detective's enraged reaction, Maura's eyes widened in shock and she took a half step back. "Alex sent me a message and I responded to it."

"Yeah I got that," Jane said, her lip curled up into an ugly sneer. "You're making a date with Alex _now_?"

Maura gaped at her friend, stunned by the accusation. "No, of course I wasn't making a date with him."

Jane scoffed loudly. "Oh, ok, fine, you weren't technically setting up an actual date at the moment, but you were obviously flirting with him and encouraging him to ask you out."

"I was _obviously_ flirting with him?" Maura asked incredulously.

The detective's voice took on a belittling tone. "You're quoting Shakespeare to each other, you're making little insides jokes about wine and drinking, you're looking forward to seeing him again so that you can continue your discussion about a psychopath–"

"Sociopath," Maura corrected automatically.

Jane paused in her rant. "Yeah, because _that's_ the important issue right now."

Jane drew in several deep breaths, trying to get herself back under control. She glared at Maura expectantly, waiting for the medical examiner to say something, anything, to justify what she had been doing, but Maura simply stared at her, completely bewildered by the detective's behavior. "You know what, this was a bad idea," Jane finally said, taking Maura's lack of a response as confirmation that she saw nothing wrong with what she had done. "There are obviously some lines that friends just shouldn't cross."

The detective began walking towards the door. As she passed Maura, the medical examiner quickly reached out and caught her by the arm. "Jane, wait. There's been a mistake."

Jane tore herself from the other woman's grasp. "Yeah, and I made it," she growled, seething with anger and humiliation. "It was obvious that Alex was interested in you. I'm sorry his prior plans kept him from coming over here tonight and you had to settle for me, but I'm not interested in filling in for someone else. I don't just 'hook up' with people, Maura. I'm not judging you, but don't expect me to be like you."

Maura stiffened as if she had been physically struck. "Well," she said, her voice rigid and tightly controlled, "I'm glad you're not judging me."

Jane winced as the harshness of her words played over and over again in her mind. She knew that she had just crossed way, way, way over the line, and despite her anger, she was ashamed by her crude remark. "Maura–"

The medical examiner immediately cut her off. "No, you're right," she said stiffly, "That's what I do. I just engage in sexual intercourse with whomever I can coax into my bed for the night."

"I didn't mean it like that," Jane protested weakly.

"Really?" the medical examiner said scornfully. "Then just how _did _you mean it, Jane?"

The detective fell silent as she tried to figure out what to say. She was still hurt and angry, but those feelings were sharply blunted now by the realization that she had struck out at Maura with unwarranted cruelty. She could think of nothing that she could say or do at the moment that wouldn't just make things worse.

"I think you should go," Maura said coldly. She turned and walked over to the kitchen island and stood with her back towards the detective.

Jane stared at her friend while she mulled over her options, wondering how the hell things had managed to go so wrong so fast. "Alright," she said at last. "I'll call you tomorrow."

Maura remained in place, silent and unmoving. Jane waited for a few moments, hoping that Maura would do something to at least acknowledge that Jane had spoken, and then exhaled heavily when she realized that the medical examiner had no intention of doing so. Seeing no other choice, the detective turned and started towards the door. Reaching the entryway, she quickly began to pull on her jacket and gloves. After a few moments, Jane heard Maura's heels striking the floor as the blonde drew closer, but the detective refused to turn to look at the other women and instead tried to button up her jacket even faster.

Anxious to avoid any further confrontation, Jane reached for the handle to the door and began to pull it open. An instant later, however, Maura's hand struck the partially open door, slamming it closed. Before Jane could react, Maura grasped her by the arm and spun her around roughly so that she was facing the medical examiner. "You know what? You're not getting off that easy!" Maura hissed angrily, her nostrils flaring with fury.

Jane tried to respond, but in the face of Maura's overwhelming rage, she found herself without any words. She hadn't seen Maura so incensed since the whole "Paddy Doyle shooting" incident, and Jane was at a loss for what to do. Even if she had wanted to just try and go ahead and walk out at this point, Maura was standing so close to her that the only way Jane would have enough room to open the door would be to push Maura back a step or two. One look at the expression on the medical examiner's face, however, told Jane that attempting such an action would not end well for her.

"Do you really think that I invited you back here tonight just because I was lonely and I couldn't find anyone else to fuck?" Maura demanded, her temper just barely under control. The medical examiner took in a deep breath and then slowly let it out again, but it was clear that it did little to calm her anger. "You're right, Alex was interested in me and he asked me out. But I told him that I was unavailable. Just as I told the EMT who asked me out last week, and the state senator who asked me out three weeks ago, and the veterinarian who asked me out last month."

Jane stared at her friend, completely confused. "So why…" Her voice trailed off hesitantly, as she found herself uncertain whether she had any right anymore to ask anything of Maura.

"Why was I texting him?"

Jane nodded.

"Because I thought he would be an excellent match for Susie."

"Susie?"

"Senior Criminalist Susie Chang. Alex is attractive and witty and intelligent, and he wasn't bothered by my job, so he wouldn't be bothered by Susie's either. And like Susie, Alex enjoys the nudist lifestyle, as evidenced by the fact that he vacations at _Cap d'agde, _a resort known for the fact that it's a place where you can fully embrace the nudist lifestyle."

Jane shook her head slightly, trying to grasp the rapid change in direction that their conversation had just taken. "So wait, you just gave Susie's phone number to Alex and told him to call her?"

"Of course not. I texted Susie while you were getting our drinks in the bar and told her I had met someone I thought might be perfect for her."

"I thought Susie was seeing someone."

"That ended months ago," Maura said with a dismissive wave of her hand.

Jane ran through everything that had happened since she had arrived at Maura's home that evening. "So the first text I saw you read…" she said slowly.

"Was from Susie, telling me that it was okay to give Alex her phone number," Maura said, her mouth set in a grim line.

"And the first text I saw you send…"

"Was me providing Alex with her number, as I told him I would at the bar _if_ Susie was interested in going out with him."

"And then he texted you back to thank you."

"That's right. Excellent work, _detective_," Maura said sarcastically. She took two steps back from the other woman, finally giving Jane the necessary space to be able to open the door. "Now get out."

With one last angry glare, Maura turned and walked back into the living room, picked up her glass of wine and sat down on her couch and stared at the fire.

Jane stood in the entryway for several moments. If there was a contest for biggest idiot on the planet, she knew she would run away with the voting. She had finally had everything she wanted right in the palm of her hand, and she had torn it to shreds, thrown the scraps on the floor, and stomped all over them.

Exhaling heavily, Jane began removing her jacket and gloves, trying not to think about the fact that the odds were that she would have to put them back on in less than a minute when the medical examiner threw her out of her house again. She ran a hand nervously through her hair and then stepped into the living room. She stared at Maura's back for a few moments, not missing the rigidness of her posture.

"Maura–"

"You're right," Maura said quietly, as she continued to face the fireplace. "I do have a more relaxed attitude about sex than you do. I won't apologize for that fact."

Taking hope from the fact that Maura hadn't immediately ordered her to leave, Jane moved to stand at the opposite end of the couch from where her friend was sitting. "There's no reason for you to apologize for anything," Jane said. "I'm the one who needs to ask for forgiveness. I shouldn't have said any of the things I said to you."

"Then why did you?"

Jane hesitated and then sat down on the couch, deliberately positioning herself as far away from Maura as she could. She began to speak, but found herself suddenly overwhelmed by the awareness that this was probably her one and only chance to make things right. Looking down, she realized that she was rubbing the scars on her palms nervously. _'Be honest,_' she told herself. '_The only chance you have to make this right is to be honest._'

"Because I was scared that I was losing you already, and so I just lashed out without thinking," Jane confessed. "Maura, I have wanted this…wanted you…for so long…but if we're going to be together, it can't just be something casual that we do when we're not with someone else…not that there's anything wrong with being casual," she said hastily. "But I can't do that with you."

"You mean everything to me, Maura," Jane continued, her voice thick with emotion. "Absolutely everything. And I want to be with you so badly that sometimes, there's literally nothing else I can think about. But I have no idea what all of this means to you."

Several moments passed, the silence in the room broken only by the sounds of the fire hissing and popping in the fireplace. "Did you ever think of just asking me what I wanted?" Maura finally asked.

"I wanted to, but I was afraid of what your answer might be."

Once again, silence descended around them. Maura stared at her wine glass, a pensive expression on her face. After what seemed like an eternity to the detective, Maura finally turned to look at her for the first time since Jane had returned to the living room.

"I didn't invite you back here tonight because I was 'settling'," Maura said in a low voice. "I invited you back here tonight because I am _tired_ of settling."

A sudden flash of hope surged through the detective, but it was tempered by an awareness that she wasn't in the clear just yet. She could still very easily blow this. "I am a huge ass," she said, her voice tinged with regret.

Maura nodded in agreement. "Yes, you are."

The medical examiner's tone was cool, but Jane could see the first signs of possible forgiveness in Maura's eyes. Jane realized that her friend wanted to be able to get past this. It was up to Jane, though, to convince the medical examiner that she was worthy of being forgiven. It was up to Jane to give Maura a reason to be able to forgive her.

The detective swallowed hard and squared her shoulders. She had one idea for what she could do here. She just hoped that Maura would be willing to go along with it. "I have never wanted a do-over as much as I want one now."

The medical examiner shook her head, not understanding what Jane was talking about. "A 'do-over'?"

"Yeah," Jane replied, a small, nervous smile on her lips. "Wipe the slate clean and try this again…a second chance to do this right."

"Oh," Maura said. The medical examiner hesitated for a few moments and then moved to sit closer to her friend. After another pause, she picked up the detective's bottle of beer and handed it to her. "Neither have I," she said with a faint smile of her own.

A wave of relief washed over Jane. Against all logic, she was going to get an opportunity to make this right. Taking a drink from her bottle, she swore to herself that she wouldn't blow this chance a second time.

"Ok, let's try this again."


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: So I knew all along this was likely to be the most difficult chapter to deal with and it was. So either evidence that I know myself very well, or evidence of creating a self-fulfilling prophecy.**

**As always, reviews good or bad are welcome.**

"_Ok, let's try this again."_

Jane cleared her throat awkwardly. "So I guess it's your turn."

Maura studied her friend for a few moments. The past several minutes had taken a mental toll on them both, and it was clear to the medical examiner that Jane was still feeling uneasy and insecure. Even though the detective was ready to simply ignore what had just happened and move on, Maura knew that to do so would be a mistake. It was clear to her now that Jane was not nearly as confident about Maura's feelings for her as the medical examiner had thought. Before they could move forward, she needed to reassure her friend that she was just as committed to Jane, as the detective was to her.

"Actually, I think we should talk first," Maura said.

The detective tensed slightly, but after a moment she nodded in acceptance. "Alright."

Recognizing that it was up to her to start, Maura considered what she wanted to say. After a few moments, she realized that there was one thing that she needed to get out of the way before anything else could be addressed. "I'm sorry about the phone messages."

Jane frowned and shook her head. "You don't need to apologize about that. I know you have important cases going on right now. I shouldn't have yelled at you for checking your messages."

Maura shrugged slightly, agreeing with part of Jane's statement. "You're right. You shouldn't have yelled, but I shouldn't have allowed myself to be so distracted either. It was rude, and there's no excuse for being rude. At the very least, I should have told you what I was doing instead of just assuming that you would automatically know I wasn't interested in Alex."

"Maura–"

"No, Jane. Please. Let me finish."

The detective started to protest again, but stopped when she saw the beseeching expression on Maura's face. Reluctantly, she bowed her head and shrugged, indicating that the medical examiner should continue.

Maura fell silent for several moments, while she tried to organize her thoughts. She needed to get this right. She needed Jane to truly comprehend the depth of her feelings for the detective.

"I understand why you're worried that all I'm looking for is a casual relationship with you," Maura began carefully, her gaze fixed firmly on her hands as she anxiously twisted them in her lap. "That's the only kind of relationship you've ever seen me in, so it's only logical that it's what you'd think I'd want from you too. But I only went out with those men because you were unavailable, and sometimes, when you're really lonely, even temporary, indifferent companionship is better than no companionship at all."

Maura lifted her head so that she could meet Jane's gaze directly. "You said you don't know what I want…that you don't know what this means to me. I don't want to take any chances on more misunderstandings between us, so I'm going to tell you exactly what it is that I want, and what I don't want."

Maura could feel her throat start to tighten, but she pushed herself to continue. "First, what I don't want. I don't want to add sex as some kind of new 'perk' to our friendship to go along with dinner and movie nights," she said, willing Jane to understand and accept her words. "I don't want meaningless intercourse with you whenever we're not seeing other people. In fact…" Maura paused and swallowed nervously. "I don't want either one of us to keep seeing other people."

Maura reached out and clasped the detective's hand in her own before continuing. "I want you, Jane. I want a committed, long-term, intimate relationship with you. I want to touch you, and hold you, and make you feel things you didn't even know you were capable of feeling. I want to wake up every morning to find myself wrapped up in your arms, and then spend the day knowing that it's going to end with us together again that night. I want you to know that there's no one else in the world that I want to be with more than I want to be with you. I want you to know that you mean everything to me."

Maura drew in a deep breath, gathering her courage. "And most of all, I want to be the woman who gets to do this."

Maura cupped Jane's face with her left hand, and then leaned over and brushed her lips against the detectives'. For a brief moment, Jane simply froze in place, and Maura worried that perhaps she had gone too far, too fast for her friend. Then Jane began to respond, her lips moving slowly against Maura's, and the medical examiner nearly swooned with desire.

After what seemed like both forever and barely an instant, Maura reluctantly pulled away from her friend. A gradual warmth began to roll through her when she saw the slightly dazed but happy expression on Jane's face. The medical examiner gently stroked her thumb back and forth across her friend's cheek for several seconds, before allowing her hand to drop back to her side. "I've been waiting for you for a long, long time Jane, hoping that someday you'd be ready to return the feelings I have for you. Now that I finally have my chance to be with you, I'm going to do whatever it takes to make this work."

Maura saw a flash of what almost appeared to be guilt cross Jane's features, before the detective abruptly lowered her head and allowed her long hair to hide her face. Jane tightened her grip on the blonde's hand. "How long have you been telling men you were unavailable?" she asked quietly.

Maura was caught off guard by the detective's response. Not understanding what was wrong or where Jane was going with the question, she hesitated before answering. "A few months."

Jane remained with her head bowed for several more seconds, and then finally looked up at her friend. "A few months…or _six_ months?"

Maura's eyes widened slightly, as she realized what Jane was asking her. "Six," she replied, knowing as she did that she was indirectly admitting that she had stopped dating other people as soon as Jane had ended her relationship with Casey.

A long silence filled the room. "You've never asked me about him."

Maura shook her head. "I was afraid you might tell me that there was still a chance you could marry him someday," she admitted.

Jane's mouth twisted into a humorless, self-deprecating smile. "No, there's no chance of that."

"So what happened?" Maura asked.

Jane shrugged and looked away. "He gave me an ultimatum, a life with him or without him," she said derisively. "I thought of what my life would be like without him, and it didn't seem all that bad."

Maura remained silent, not certain what to say. She wasn't sure exactly what response she had anticipated from the detective, but Jane's reply had been far harsher and more acerbic than she expected. The problem was that she didn't know just who Jane was so upset with: Casey, or herself.

The detective rubbed her forehead in obvious frustration, and then looked at Maura with profound regret. "I'm sorry. After everything I put you through with Casey, you deserve a better answer than that."

Jane released her hold on Maura's hand and pushed herself up from the couch. She walked over to stand in front of the fireplace and stared silently into the dying flames for several seconds, focusing her thoughts. "I did care about Casey…maybe I even loved him. I really don't know any more," she confessed in a hushed voice.

"What I do know, is that the entire time I was dating him, I never made him a priority," Jane continued. "When I sat down and considered his proposal, I realized that if I married him, that would have to change. The problem was that I realized for my relationship with Casey to come first, my relationship with you would have to come second. You and I would have to spend less time together; fewer dinners, fewer movie nights, fewer everything." Jane shook her head and turned around to face her friend. "I didn't like that idea at all."

Jane exhaled heavily. "I turned down Casey's proposal because, whether I loved him or not, I didn't care enough about him to be to be willing to sacrifice any part of my life with you to spend more time with him. In the end, I had no problem seeing a life for myself without him in it, but I couldn't imagine my life without you. That told me more than anything else who the most important person in my life actually was."

Maura stood up and walked over to embrace her friend. She smiled when she felt the detective's arms tighten around her, bringing her closer. "And you're the most important person in mine," Maura whispered, her cheek resting contentedly against her friend's shoulder.

"I'm sorry," Jane said, her voice tinged with shame.

Maura pulled back to look at her friend. "For what?" she asked in a puzzled tone.

"For not seeing that I was hurting you with him, for being so desperate to have what I thought a normal relationship was supposed to be, that I didn't see what was right in front of me the whole time. I haven't had a lot of serious romantic relationships, so maybe that's why I didn't recognize there was anything odd about the fact that I didn't really care about spending time with Casey. I was completely clueless that there were fundamental parts of my relationship with him that were missing and needed to be there because…" Her voice trailed off, as a chagrined expression appeared on her face.

"Because you had me to fill in those parts," Maura finished quietly.

"I wasn't using you, Maura," Jane said. "If I had realized what I was doing, I swear I would have done something to change things sooner."

Maura laid her head back down on the detective's shoulder. "I know."

Jane rested her cheek against the back of Maura's head. "So you forgive me for being such an idiot with Casey?"

"There's nothing to forgive," Maura replied. "Casey is the past. All I care about is the future," she said.

Jane pressed her lips against Maura's hair and then stepped back just enough to be able to look at her friend. "I can't believe this is actually happening," she said in wonderment. "I never thought I could be lucky enough to fall for my best friend. Then again, I never thought I'd be lucky enough to have a best friend like you."

Maura smiled up at her friend. "It's not your turn, Detective," she teased lightly.

A look of confusion briefly appeared on Jane's face, before it registered with her that she had just made an "I Never" statement. "Oh," she said, a bashful grin appearing on her lips. "I didn't mean to do that."

Maura couldn't stop herself from laughing in response. "That's good, because I have no idea how to interpret that 'you'."

Jane's grin spread wider, as she remembered her earlier joke. "Well I'm sure _you_ never thought you'd have a friend like _me_: pushy, impatient, loud, sarcastic–"

"Loyal, thoughtful, brave, compassionate," Maura interrupted softly, her voice filled with tenderness. "You're right. I never thought I'd be lucky enough to have a friend like you either."

Jane swallowed to get past the sudden tightness in her throat. "So which one of us drinks?"

Maura shook her head. "I told you…it's not your turn," she said, before stretching up and allowing her lips to cover the detectives' in a slow, thoughtful kiss.

Jane returned Maura's kiss, her mouth moving lightly against her friend's. Despite the detective's ready response, however, Maura could still feel the tension in Jane's body, and she knew that her friend wasn't prepared for anything more than this yet. It was time to try something else for awhile, and the music that was coming from her home sound system gave her an idea of exactly what she wanted to try.

Maura released her hold on the detective and then took a step back from her friend. She extended her hand to Jane. "Dance with me," she said with a smile.

Jane frowned. "I don't really dance, and I've never danced with a woman."

Maura laughed softly. "It's still not your turn."

"Maybe it's time to start a new game," Jane said, clearly not wanting to dance.

"Alright," Maura agreed, reaching out to take the detective by the hand. "We can play while we dance."

Jane shook her head skeptically. "How will that work?"

Maura grinned confidently and pulled her friend closer. "Trust me. It's a new game. It'll work."

Still, Jane continued to balk. "I don't know how to dance to this kind of music," she demurred.

"It's ok," Maura replied. "I'll lead."

"_You'll_ lead?" Jane blurted.

"I learned how in school," Maura explained matter-of-factly. She took Jane's left hand and placed it on her own right shoulder, and then took the detective's right hand in her left, palms touching, before finally resting her right hand lightly on Jane's left shoulder blade. Maura then positioned herself so that she was just slightly to Jane's right with about a foot of space between them.

"Stand up straight," Maura instructed her friend.

Jane made a face but did as she was told.

"Now, we're just going to do a simple box step," Maura explained. "When we start, take a step backwards with your right foot, and then slide your other foot back to meet it and then to the left. Then move your right foot over to your left and you're done. Ready?"

"Not even slightly," Jane replied, staring intently at her feet.

Maura smiled. "We'll take it slow. One," she said, carefully stepping forward with her left foot, forcing Jane to step backward with her right.

"Two," Maura said, easing her right foot forward. Jane remained where she was for a moment, and then awkwardly stepped back with her left foot and then moved it to the side. Maura mirrored her motions, albeit far more smoothly.

"Three," Maura finished, as she slid her left foot to the right while Jane slid her right foot to the left.

"Excellent," Maura encouraged the nervous detective. "Now just do the same in reverse."

"Meaning what?" Jane asked, her attention still firmly focused on her feet.

"Step forward with your left foot on 'one,', move your right foot forward and then to the side on 'two,' and then finish by sliding your left foot over to your right on 'three'."

"Of course; how obvious," Jane muttered under her breath.

Maura bit her lip to prevent herself from laughing. "One," she said, as she stepped backwards with her right foot. She nodded in approval when Jane stepped towards her. "Two," she continued, sliding her left foot back and to the side.

"Three," Jane murmured as she brought her feet back together, completing her first box step.

"That was really good," Maura complimented her friend. "Let's try it again."

For a moment, the medical examiner was certain that her friend was going to refuse, but Jane surprised her and instead nodded her assent. For the next several minutes the two women danced together, with Maura lightly guiding Jane through the steps. At first, the detective found herself frequently confused over which foot to move next, but it didn't take long before she was able to settle into the appropriate pattern and rhythm. Neither woman spoke as they danced, save for Jane counting quietly to herself to keep time. Eventually, though, the detective began to grow more self-assured, and after a few more minutes had passed, she finally gained enough confidence to stop watching her feet and instead lifted her gaze to meet her friend's.

"See, it's not so hard, is it?" Maura asked, as they moved together around the room.

Jane smiled slightly. "I guess I just needed the right partner."

A sudden burst of joy rocked through Maura in response to Jane's words. For the first time in years, she felt blissfully happy and fully alive, and as she continued to dance with her friend, she began to allow herself to believe in the possibility that finally, after years of waiting, Jane was going to be hers at last.

"So it's my turn to say something I've never done?" Maura asked coyly.

"I guess so," Jane agreed, somewhat disinterestedly.

"I have never ridden a roller coaster," Maura said.

Jane immediately stopped dancing and began to pull away from the medical examiner. Maura however, tightened her grasp on the other woman. "Where are you going?"

Jane gave her friend a puzzled look. "My beer is over there," she replied, jerking her head towards the table in front of the couch where she had left the bottle.

Maura smirked up at the other woman. "New game, new rules."

"Ok," Jane said. "What are the rules?"

"Instead of drinking, you have to kiss the other person if you've done the thing she says," Maura replied.

Jane grinned, obviously approving of the new rules. Her head dipped down so that she could press her lips lightly against Maura's. After a few seconds, she straightened back up again and returned her hand to the medical examiner's shoulder, indicating that she was ready to continue dancing.

Maura smiled and drew Jane closer, and then resumed their dance. Jane was now following the medical examiner easily as they moved around Maura's living room in perfect time to the music. "I've never been to the opera," Jane said, after several seconds had passed.

Maura slowed their steps so that she could pull Jane to her completely. She brushed her mouth against Jane's in a gentle kiss, her heart lurching wildly as the detective's lips parted slightly beneath her own. She resisted the urge to continue the kiss and instead pulled away, noting with satisfaction that Jane's breathing had quickened noticeably.

They began dancing once more, but now their bodies were pressed against one another as they moved. Maura could feel a tingling in the pit of her stomach, and it was all she could do to control the erotic images of Jane naked and writhing in her bed that began to fill her mind. "Your turn," the detective said, interrupting the medical examiner's prurient thoughts.

"I've never played football," Maura said, smiling up at her friend.

The detectives' mouth lowered purposefully to Maura's, as the blonde's arms moved up to loop around her friend's neck. Jane's tongue grazed over the line of Maura's upper lip, teased the corner of her mouth, and then traced the full curve of her bottom lip. Maura moaned and opened her mouth, and Jane wasted no time in accepting the invitation. The detective's tongue gently probed the recesses of Maura's mouth, before engaging the medical examiner's tongue in a playful duel.

Eventually, Jane reluctantly drew away, her eyes dark and intense as she gazed down at her friend. For several seconds, the two women simply stared at each other, their bodies molded tightly together, all thoughts of dancing long gone for them both. "I've never flown on a private jet," the detective finally said, her voice silky and low.

Maura kissed her friend deeply, searchingly, her tongue flicking at the detective's, tasting the moist sweetness. Jane answered Maura's gentle thrusts with tentative strokes of her own, causing Maura to whimper, and when the detective instinctively sucked at her tongue, it was nearly Maura's undoing. A hot rush of desire stabbed through the medical examiner, and her fingers tangled in the soft curls at the nape of Jane's neck to draw her closer.

When Maura finally eased back from her friend, both women's cheeks were flushed and their breathing was ragged. The blonde tried to come up with something to say, but her thought processes were completely fractured by the feelings Jane was arousing within her. "I've…I've never sung at a karaoke bar," she finally rasped hoarsely.

A faintly perplexed Jane's face. "Neither have I," she replied. "What happens–"

The rest of the detective's question was cut off when Maura caught Jane by the back of her head and drew her down to cover her mouth with a passionate kiss. Maura's lips moved over Jane's sensuously, then possessively, as she deepened the kiss, her tongue demanding entrance. Jane groaned as her mouth opened to receive the blonde's kiss. Maura's tongue slid between the detective's teeth to explore and to rediscover her warmth, her texture, and her taste. Unable to resist touching Jane any longer, Maura's left hand moved upwards to cup the underside of her friend's breast and then squeeze lightly, drawing forth another low groan from the other woman.

"Stop!" Jane gasped, her breath coming in rapid pants.

Maura immediately dropped her hand. "I…I'm sorry," she stammered, embarrassment staining her cheeks bright red as she started to back away. "I thought you wanted–"

Jane quickly reached out and caught Maura by the arm, then roughly gathered the medical examiner in her arms, her embrace desperate and urgent with need. "I do! God, I do!" she nearly growled against her friend's ear, as she struggled to hold on to her control. "But not here. It's still early, and my mother could walk in here at any moment."

Maura exhaled in relief when she heard Jane's concern. She eased back so that she could look at her friend. The raw, burning hunger she could see in the other woman's eyes nearly took Maura's breath away, and it sparked a wave of desire in her that she was nearly powerless to resist. Maura smoothed a finger across her friend's bottom lip, and then covered Jane's mouth with a soft, sensual kiss. "We could continue this upstairs," she whispered huskily.

Jane simply nodded, and then relaxed her hold on her friend. Maura reached down to take her friend by the hand and began to lead the detective towards the stairs. After a couple of steps, though, Jane stumbled to a halt.

"Maura," she said in a strained voice. "I…I've never done this before, I mean, not…not with–"

Maura stepped forward and silenced the detective's nervous ramblings with a gentle kiss against her lips. "It's ok," she said, brushing her fingertips across Jane's cheek. "I'll lead."


	5. Chapter 5

**AN: So sorry about the delay on this one. Not so much a case of writer's block as massive cold, followed by having to go to Las Vegas for a week for business (neither of which are conducive to writing :). Mostly though I just couldn't get the mood right and I wasn't happy with the way the chapter felt. Plus this one was a particular bear to edit, and it's taken me days to get that done.**

**So basically what I'm saying is I want to send a massive thank you to everyone who's following, but especially to everyone who has reviewed because even it was just a couple words, that support is what kept me going to push through and get this chapter done. I just hope it's what at least some of you were hoping for.**

* * *

As soon as Jane and Maura walked into the medical examiner's bedroom, the blonde immediately shut and locked the door. Maura turned to face the detective, and for a moment, the two women simply stared at each other in silence, the very air around them crackling with energy. Jane was aware of Maura in every pore of her body…her nearness, the scent of her, the heat of her skin. Unable to wait even a second longer the detective stepped forward to close the gap between them and lowered her head to her friend's.

At the first touch of Jane's lips on her own, Maura moaned and pulled the detective hard against her body. Her mouth moved over the brunette's possessively, demandingly, forcing her lips open with a thrusting tongue. Hot, wet and plundering, the kiss ignited a fever inside the detective that drove the air from her lungs and made her legs nearly buckle beneath her. Groaning with need, she clung to Maura tightly, her arousal growing exponentially in the realization that what she had dreamed about for so long was finally about to happen.

Maura tasted and explored Jane's mouth for several long moments, before abandoning it to sear a path along the column of her friend's throat. When her downward progress was impeded by Jane's shirt, however, Maura drew in a ragged breath and eased her grip on the tall Italian. The medical examiner looked up at her friend. "No," she said with a shaky smile. "I don't want to rush this." Stretching up, Maura again kissed the detective; this time, though, her lips moved softly against Jane's, the infinite tenderness slaking one hunger, the deep sensuality creating yet another. Maura's lips danced across the line of her friend's jaw until she reached Jane's ear. "I want to take my time with you," the blonde murmured. "I want tonight to be something special...something neither of us will ever forget."

Inhaling deeply, Maura pulled back to study the dark-haired woman. She allowed her appreciative gaze to roam boldly up and down Jane's tall form for several seconds, then reached out and started to leisurely unbutton her friend's shirt. Lightly batting the detective's hands away when she tried to help, the blonde shook her head firmly. "Let me do this," she said in a hushed tone. Maura lifted her head, and Jane could see the desire and passion smoldering in her eyes. "You'll have your turn later," she promised, while her fingers carried on with their work.

As she undid the second button, the blonde dipped her head to press her lips to the newly revealed flesh, smiling when she heard Jane's swift intake of air. Maura continued her erotic exploration as each additional button was unfastened; every caress, every touch serving to fan the flames that burned inside them both. By the time Maura had undone the last button and tugged Jane's shirttails free from her pants, both women were breathing rapidly. Pulling the detective's shirt open, the blonde slipped it carefully off Jane's shoulders and tossed it to the side. Maura smiled sensually as she idly trailed her fingertips along the detective's collarbone and the lace at the top of her bra, before sliding her hand around the back of Jane's neck to pull her into a scorching kiss.

Jane made a low moaning sound and closed her eyes, a little ball of need bursting to life in the pit of her stomach. All too soon, though, Maura ended the kiss and pulled away. Ignoring Jane's protests, the medical examiner moved to stand behind her. Maura enveloped the taller woman in a warm embrace and rubbed her body against Jane's back seductively. The medical examiner's breath was hot on her skin as she kissed and nipped at the detective's shoulder, and Jane couldn't have stopped the small sigh of pleasure that fell from her lips in response even if she had tried.

Maura's fingers skimmed across the smooth plane of Jane's stomach and the inward curve of her waist, before finally cupping the detective's breasts through her bra. When Jane groaned and lifted her hands to cover the blonde's in encouragement, Maura began squeezing the soft mounds firmly. Leaning in, she nibbled on her friend's ear. "I want to touch and kiss you everywhere," she husked, causing Jane to inhale sharply. "I want to hear you call out my name when you come."

Maura continued her passionate caresses for several minutes, before dropping a hand to the top of Jane's slacks. With agonizing slowness, she undid the button and nudged the zipper down, then slipped her hand inside the detective's pants to stroke her lightly over her underwear. Jane immediately thrust her hips towards the maddening fingers, seeking firmer contact. When the blonde instead withdrew after only a few seconds, she whimpered in disappointment. Desperately, she tried to catch Maura's wrist to force her back to where she wanted her, but the blonde easily evaded her grasp.

"Patience," the medical examiner admonished teasingly. Maura drew intricate patterns across the detective's back, sending frissons of fire and ice racing up Jane's spine. Finally, her fingers moved to unhook the detective's bra. Jane immediately shrugged out of the unwanted garment and let it fall to the floor, while Maura stepped around to stand in front of her again.

The medical examiner grazed a light kiss against her friend's lips, and then turned so that her back was to the detective. "Now it's your turn," she whispered. "Undress me."

Jane brushed the medical examiner's hair to the side, and then placed a kiss on the spot where Maura's neck met her shoulder. With a slightly shaky hand, she took hold of the zipper on her friend's dress and slowly eased it downward. When the zipper reached the base of Maura's spine, Jane slipped both hands inside the medical examiner's dress. She pulled Maura backwards until the blonde's hips were pressed snugly to her own, and then slid her hands forward so that they were resting on the bare skin of the other woman's stomach.

The detective lowered her head to nuzzle Maura's neck. "I have wanted you for so long," Jane murmured, somewhat dazed and barely able to believe this was actually happening "I want you more than I've ever wanted anyone in my entire life." Jane began to gently caress the softness beneath her fingertips, gradually moving upwards, until her palms were just below the curves of Maura's breasts. "And knowing that you want me too…" The detective's voice trailed off as she placed several feather light kisses along the side of Maura's throat. "That just makes this all the more incredible."

Jane slid the dress off Maura's shoulders and down her arms. As the garment fell to the floor, the medical examiner kicked off her heels and stepped out her dress. The sight of her friend wearing nothing but a dark teal bra and matching panties caused Jane's insides to clench. The detective hesitated for a moment, and then reached to unhook the other woman's bra. Despite her trembling fingers, she managed the task after several frustrating seconds, and in another instant, the bra had joined the rest of their clothes on the floor, leaving Maura in nothing but her panties.

Maura turned around, and for a moment, Jane found it nearly impossible to breathe as she marveled at the perfection of the blonde's delicate and beautifully feminine body. The medical examiner smiled and took Jane by the hand to lead the brunette to the bed, then carefully pushed the detective down to sit on the edge of the mattress. Dropping to her knees, the blonde quickly undid the laces of her friend's shoes. Gazing up at the brunette, Maura removed each shoe and then massaged the detective's calves and feet. Leaning forward, she wrapped her arms around Jane's waist and then scattered light kisses across her belly. When Maura started using her tongue to probe the detective's navel, Jane gasped and her pulse quickened, as a warm feeling of arousal swept through her.

After several seconds, Maura released her hold on the detective and motioned for her to stand. Slipping her hands underneath the waistband of Jane's slacks, she pulled them over the Italian's narrow hips. When Jane finally stood before her wearing nothing more than a pair of black panties, Maura paused to sit back and simply drink in her appearance.

A flash of nervousness and insecurity crept over Jane, as she watched Maura's eyes travel up and down her body. The detective knew that physically, she couldn't compare to her friend. Maura's body was flawless…a work of art: smooth skin, soft curves, full perfect breasts. Jane's body, on the other hand, was covered in scars, angular and hard, and she most definitely did not possess full breasts. When Maura looked up at Jane and smiled at her tenderly, however, the detective felt her heart skip a beat.

"You're gorgeous, my friend," the medical examiner whispered. Slowly rising to her feet, the blonde trailed her fingers along the insides of the detective's thighs, across hard abs, and around rigid nipples. Lifting her hands, Maura cupped the brunette's cheeks. "Absolutely gorgeous," she said in a husky voice, drawing Jane in for a deep, soul searching kiss.

The two women drifted to the bed in each other's arms, their mouths still locked in a kiss. Jane slipped her arms around the blonde as they lay side by side and pulled her close, molding Maura's soft curves to the contours of her own lean body. The two women's hands roamed freely over each other, as they both took advantage of the opportunity to touch the one they had dreamed of so often. Soon both women were breathing heavily, and the sounds of their moans and sighs of pleasure were filling the room.

The minutes slipped by while they kissed and explored each other's bodies. Finally, though, Maura placed her hand on Jane's shoulder and pushed her gently but firmly so that the detective was lying flat on the bed. Propping herself up on one elbow, Maura used her free hand to continue to caress the detective's body while she scattered kisses across Jane's cheeks, jawline, and brow. The medical examiner's fingertips traveled over Jane's flat stomach up to her breasts and then down to her hips. "I can't believe this is finally happening," Maura said softly, lowering her head to kiss the brunette tenderly.

Leaning back to look at her friend, Maura reached out and wrapped her palm around the detective's right breast. She moaned along with Jane when she felt it swell beneath her touch. Using her entire hand, she stroked and squeezed the warm flesh, occasionally drawing her thumb across the tip. Finally, she captured the nipple between her thumb and forefinger and pinched lightly, causing Jane to gasp and arch desperately into her.

Maura bent her head and nuzzled Jane's breasts, bathing them with kisses. An involuntary whimper escaped the detective's lips when Maura drew a nipple in and swirled her tongue around it. She immediately cupped the back of Maura's head to hold her tightly to her breast, encouraging the blonde to continue. "God Maura," Jane rasped, as electric shocks of pleasure raced through her. "That feels so good."

Licking and nibbling, Maura traced a path down the slope of the detective's breast and over to the other. The blonde used her tongue to lazily circle Jane's breast in a slow, ever tightening spiral. After what seemed like an eternity, Maura's hot, wet mouth finally closed over the peak and began sucking, causing the brunette to sigh audibly. A dizzying rush of excitement coursed through the detective when the blonde brought her hand up to caress the Italian's other breast, and when Maura bit down and tugged firmly on one erect tip with her teeth, while pinching and pulling the other nipple equally firmly with her fingers, Jane cried out from the perfect combination of pleasure and pain.

Maura continued to touch and kiss Jane's breasts for several more minutes, until the brunette was twisting and groaning helplessly beneath her. The detective was panting heavily when the blonde suddenly slipped off her panties and moved to straddle Jane's leg. The brunette gasped loudly when she felt the other woman's wetness against her skin. Instinctively, she pressed her thigh hard against her friend, eliciting a gasp from the medical examiner as well. Maura's body slid over Jane's with sensuous, sinuous grace, drawing forth a low growl of approval from the detective. As Jane pulled the blonde down to kiss her hungrily, she could feel the entire length of Maura's body pressing against her own, and a throbbing need sprang up between her legs.

Breaking away from the detective's kiss, Maura reached down to caress Jane's inner thighs. The blonde stroked her friend lightly for several minutes, gradually building the fire inside her. Finally Maura began drawing her fingertips across the heated center that was still hidden by the brunette's now soaked underwear. Hearing Jane's deep-throated cry of pleasure, the medical examiner grew bolder, and she began pressing more firmly against the thin material. Her efforts were rewarded when Jane's hips began rocking forward, as the Italian wordlessly pleaded for more contact.

Slipping her hand beneath the waistband of Jane's panties, Maura began removing the last of her friend's clothing. Jane immediately lifted her hips from the bed to make it easier for the medical examiner to take off the offending garment, her eyes drifting shut in anticipation of what was to come. Tossing the underwear to the side, Maura trailed her fingers through the shock of dark curls, stroking her way closer and closer to the warm, wet flesh they covered. She parted the swollen outer lips and dipped her fingers into the valley between them, groaning loudly when she felt the flood that greeted her.

Maura slowly dragged her fingers through the detective's slick folds, tracing the outer and inner lips. Jane whimpered softly when the medical examiner started to stroke her, and she thrust her hips forward in response. She gasped when her friend's fingers slid up to brush over her clit, and when Maura gently massaged the small bundle of nerves, red hot arrows of sharp pleasure began stinging through her body.

Jane felt Maura's fingers move away suddenly, and she moaned in protest. Opening her eyes, she saw the other woman smiling at her. Maura lightly drew wet circles around each of the detective's erect nipples, and then returned her hand to between Jane's legs to begin caressing her once again. As Jane watched, Maura leisurely licked the moisture from her breasts. The realization that it was her own juices the other woman was licking from her body sent a searing heat shooting through the detective, and her head fell backwards as she buried her fingers in Maura's blonde tresses and arched upward into her friend's mouth.

Maura continued to use her fingers to please her friend, while her tongue began to trace a path downward. She nibbled and licked Jane's belly, stopping briefly to gently probe her navel, and then resumed her journey. The detective let her arms fall to her sides and gave herself over to the incredible sensations coursing through her body. Jane was lost, drifting in whirls of sensual pleasure, as she allowed herself to be carried to greater and greater heights. When she felt Maura spread her thighs, though, the brunette roused herself to look at the other woman. Hardly able to believe what she was seeing, Jane watched, spellbound, while her friend settled between her legs, her face inches from the detective's center. She saw Maura's nostrils flare as she inhaled deeply, before dropping her head and burying her mouth in the wet curls that surrounded Jane's core.

Jane slammed her head back into the pillows when Maura's soft tongue flicked out over her swollen lips, parting them slightly. The blonde began licking back and forth through the detective's soaked folds, pausing occasionally to circle her tongue around Jane's sensitive opening and lightly probe inside. A choked sob was torn from the brunette's throat when Maura used her fingers to spread her labia further apart as her tongue became more aggressive and adventurous. When she felt Maura's tongue begin to plunge deep inside her, heat beyond anything she'd ever imagined began to consume her, and Jane started rocking her hips harder against her friend's face, her body shaking uncontrollably.

Jane's head lolled from side to side, soft, mewling sounds of pleasure falling from her lips. Never in her life had she experienced anything to compare to what she was feeling in that moment. It wasn't simply a matter of Maura's skill, although truth be told, Jane had never had a lover whose abilities could compare to what the medical examiner was currently doing to her. The real issue was that Maura was so obviously enjoying what she was doing. Hell, Jane could hear her practically humming with contentment as she continued her activities between the detective's legs. Every one of Jane's boyfriends who had done this for her had done so with an obvious attitude of feeling obligated to do so, or simply to force Jane to feel obligated to return the "favor." Maura, however, was clearly doing what she was doing not because she felt that she had to, but because she wanted to. Jane's awareness of this simple fact sent a trembling thrill racing through her body.

Maura shifted her position and began biting and licking Jane's clit, as she brought up one of her hands to slide her fingers through the brunette's soaked labia. Shivers of delight swept through the detective, each more intense than the last. "So good," Jane sighed. She raised her arms so that her fingers could thread their way into the other woman's hair. "So fucking good," she panted, her breathing labored as she struggled to take in enough oxygen.

Maura drew Jane's clit abruptly and fully into her mouth and then sucked and tongued it firmly. An instant later, she thrust a finger deeply inside the detective and started pumping in and out. "Maura…that's…oh…," Jane moaned, arching her back. Her fingers clenched and unclenched spasmodically, as she held the other woman's mouth to her. "Don't stop…please don't…God…Maura…," she whimpered frantically.

For one single, timeless moment, Jane's world came to a complete standstill, and she felt as though she were burning alive from the inside out. An instant later, a million starbursts shattered inside her, and she gave in to the golden rays of wild ecstasy that flooded through her. Mindless with need, she drove her hips against her friend, hoarse sobs of pleasure the only sounds she was capable of making.

After what seemed like an eternity, Jane collapsed onto the bed, eyes closed, chest heaving as she gasped for breath, barely able to think let alone move. She was dimly aware of Maura placing soft kisses on her face and throat, and then curling up beside her, but she was too sated to respond. Instead, she just luxuriated in the warm languid pleasure that completely filled her, and waited for the pounding of her heart to ease.

Eventually, after several minutes had passed, Jane managed to open her eyes. The first thing she saw was Maura's head lying on her shoulder. Turning slightly, the detective pressed a kiss to her friend's golden locks. Immediately, Maura looked up at her, a warm smile on her lips. "Hey there," Jane murmured, her voice even more raspy than usual.

Maura stretched up and captured the detective's mouth in a gentle, lingering kiss. "How are you feeling?" she asked softly.

Jane chuckled wryly. "I don't think there are words for how I'm feeling right now…maybe take 'amazing' and multiply it by a billion and you might be close."

Maura smiled at her friend. "Do you want to try to get some sleep?"

Jane frowned in mild confusion. "Sleep? What about you? I haven't…done anything for you yet," she finished awkwardly.

Maura reached up brushed her knuckles along the line of the detective's jaw. "It's ok. You're exhausted. You don't have to do anything for me tonight. We can wait until tomorrow."

The detective shook her head. She reached out to catch her friend's hand and brought it to her lips to kiss the blonde's fingers. "I'm fine, and I don't want to wait until tomorrow to get a chance to finally touch you."

Maura trembled in response to the obvious desire in the detective's voice. "Well if you're sure, I'm certainly not going to try to stop you," she said huskily.

Jane nodded, but then tightened her grip on Maura's hand. "There's just one thing."

"What?"

"I'm sure I want to do this," the detective said quietly, "But I'm not sure _how_ to do this. I don't want to disappoint–"

Maura quickly placed her fingers over Jane's lips, silencing her. "First, there is no possible way that you can disappoint me, so just put that thought out of your mind, alright?"

Jane hesitated for a moment. "Alright," she said at last.

"And second," Maura continued, as a sultry grin appeared on her face. "I told you I'd lead, and I meant it."

"I don't understand. How are you going to lead?"

In response, Maura rolled onto her back and then pulled Jane forward until the detective was leaning over her, one hand on the blonde's hip. The medical examiner ran her fingers across her friend's shoulder and rested them on the nape of Jane's neck. "Kiss me," she urged.

A sense of tingling delight began to flow through the detective. Bending down, Jane used her tongue to lightly outline Maura's lips, before finally pushing it inside her mouth to duel with the medical examiner's. Jane groaned loudly when she felt the warm softness of the other woman's tongue and immediately deepened the kiss, pressing her body more firmly against the blonde's as she did so. Hearing the moans coming from Maura's throat, her earlier anxiety drained away and she started rubbing sensuously against her new lover. Slowly she moved her fingers up and down Maura's sides and stomach, while she trailed a path of light kisses along the medical examiner's jaw and then nuzzled her ear.

After several moments, Maura slid her arms around Jane to pull her even closer, before taking hold of the detective's wrist. Breaking their kiss to look up at her friend, she placed the brunette's hand over her breast. "Touch me here," Maura whispered, gazing deeply into the Italian's eyes. "Just relax and do what comes naturally," she said, as she lightly stroked the back of Jane's hand in encouragement.

Taking a deep breath, the brunette nodded her head and began carefully rubbing the other woman's breast. She kneaded the sensitive flesh with her fingers and then smoothed her palm across the entire surface, causing Maura to moan loudly and arch into her. Feeling more confident, Jane shifted her weight and propped herself up on an elbow and used her free hand to caress the medical examiner's breasts. She watched in amazement as Maura reacted to her touch, astounded by the power that she had over the other woman. Using the tips of her fingers, the detective traced small, lazy circles around first one nipple and then the other, smiling when she saw them stiffen in response. Over and over she teased the blonde, lightly stroking and caressing the firm mounds, until Maura's soft cries of pleasure filled her ears.

"You like that?" Jane asked thickly, knowing the answer but wanting to hear Maura say it out loud.

"Yessss," the blonde hissed, as she bit her lip and closed her eyes. Covering the detective's hand with her own, Maura squeezed it firmly. "Please, Jane...more...I want...harder," she pleaded.

Jane studied her friend for a few seconds, before grasping the medical examiner's nipple firmly and then pinching and twisting it. Maura's whimper of approval served as her reward. "Like this?" she whispered huskily. "Is this what you want?"

Barely able to speak, Maura nodded helplessly, as Jane's fingers turned her into molten lava beneath the skin. "Yes…just...just like that. God Jane that feels...that feels...oh God…," she panted, arching desperately into her friend's hands.

Jane continued her rough treatment, loving the sounds Maura made when her nipples were touched. She trailed her lips along the column of Maura's slender neck. "_How _does it feel?" she asked, licking and nibbling at the sensitive hollow of the medical examiner's throat.

"Good," Maura choked out. She slid her fingers into the detective's hair to urge her downward, directing Jane's mouth to her aching breast. "It feels…it feels goooood," she groaned, when she felt a warm, wet sensation envelope her nipple.

Jane ravished her friend's breasts, nipping and sucking them both, while Maura's hand on her head guided and encouraged her. She watched as the medical examiner rolled her head backwards, obviously enjoying the attentions her breasts were receiving. A surge of heat coursed through the detective at the realization that she was the reason for her friend's arousal. Without her conscious direction, her hand began wandering down the other woman's stomach. Varying from the lightest caress to firm pressure, she ran her fingers across Maura's sweat-slickened body, causing the blonde to quiver beneath her.

When Jane's hand brushed over the medical examiner's damp curls, Maura moaned loudly and her hips did an involuntary roll. Jane's eyes traveled down the blonde's naked, writhing form, until they landed on her own hand. Despite herself, she blushed at the sight of her fingers resting on her friend's most intimate place, and her movements momentarily stilled.

Whimpering frantically in protest, Maura reached to cover Jane's hand and then moved the detective's fingers against her pulsing flesh. "Please Jane," she begged desperately. "Don't stop. For God's sake don't stop."

Jane stared at her friend, while she permitted Maura to direct the movements of her hand. The intense look on the medical examiner's face made the detective feel warm all over. She pressed and pulled the tender, swollen lips, watching as Maura's hips began thrusting rhythmically against her. Finally, she lowered her head so that she could nibble on the medical examiner's earlobe. "Show me what to do," she murmured, as her tongue dipped into the other woman's ear. "Show me what you want."

Maura swallowed hard and struggled to find the ability to speak coherently. "Rub here," she said tightly, as she moved Jane's fingers onto her clitoris. Using her own hand, she guided the detective's in a circular pattern across the surface of her clit, showing her the motion that she desired.

"Like this?" Jane asked. She leaned back to observe the action of her hand, while she slid her fingers over and around the hard bundle of nerves.

"Yes," the medical examiner rasped. Her grip on Jane's hand loosened, and she allowed her friend to act on her own. "Just like that," she said hoarsely.

Jane began to stroke her friend with increasing confidence. She studied Maura closely to gauge her reactions to what she was doing, determined to learn what pleased her and what did not. She watched the muscles of Maura's thighs tense and relax, while the blonde's hips continued to buck against the pressure of her hand. Noticing that the medical examiner was beginning to tremble uncontrollably, Jane dipped her fingers down and swirled them briefly through the blonde's warm wet folds. Bringing her hand back up, she lightly pinched Maura's engorged clit, nearly pushing the medical examiner over the edge in the process.

Her breath coming in tight, sharply punctuated gasps, Maura gazed up at her friend with eyes that were barely able to focus. "Jane...would you...would you please..." The medical examiner paused, as she struggled to find the strength to speak.

"Anything," Jane whispered fiercely. "Just tell me what you want me to do."

"I want...I want to feel you inside me," Maura said thickly, as she placed her hand on top of Jane's. "Can you…please?"

Not trusting herself to speak, Jane simply nodded her head and permitted the medical examiner to again guide her hand. She slipped a finger inside of her friend, her eyes widening and her breath catching in her throat when she felt the warm, velvety softness that surrounded her. She let Maura direct her for several seconds and then started pumping inside the medical examiner on her own, glorying in the knowledge that she was bringing pleasure to her friend.

Maura hips rose up to meet the detective's thrusts, as she laid her head back and closed her eyes. The power of the sensations rippling through her body was beginning to overwhelm her, and it was obvious that she wouldn't last much longer. "Please, more," Maura pleaded, reaching weakly for Jane's hand and then letting her arm fall away when the brunette slid a second finger inside of her.

Maura began to lose herself in the intensity of the moment as her hips pumped desperately against her friend. Finally, with a guttural groan the medical examiner arched and shuddered, her release claiming her completely. Jane watched as her friend thrashed and trembled beneath her, the feel of Maura's inner walls contracting against her fingers sending chills up and down her spine. When the medical examiner's spasms eased, the detective started to remove her fingers, drawing forth a mumbled protest from her friend. Responding to the need in Maura's voice, Jane stroked her gently, waiting until the last of the aftershocks had passed, before finally withdrawing her hand completely.

Looking at her friend, Jane saw that Maura's eyes were closed and a lazy smile was gracing her features. Feeling a surge of satisfaction, the brunette allowed her gaze to travel over the other woman's body, eventually settling on the blonde curls that were drenched with the medical examiner's wetness. Jane glanced at the hand she had just used to pleasure her friend. She studied it thoughtfully for several seconds, and then lifted it to her face and sniffed it curiously. Unable to resist, she tentatively placed her fingers in her mouth and sucked on them. She smiled at the sweet taste.

Hearing a small sound, Jane glanced down at her friend and saw that Maura had recovered and was now staring up at her. Realizing that the other woman had seen what she had done, the detective's face flamed with embarrassment. Maura, however, simply grinned at her. She pulled Jane to her so that she could cover her mouth with a passionate kiss, before lying back again. She lightly caressed the detective's cheek with the tips of her fingers. "Do you like the way I taste?" the blonde asked in a throaty tone.

"Yeah, I do." Jane replied steadily. Her self-consciousness faded away, as the memory of what Maura had done to her earlier gave her an idea. Lowering her head, Jane trailed her lips across the medical examiner's body: sliding along her throat, skimming over her breasts and slowly moving across her belly. "Does it taste as good when it comes directly from the source?" she asked huskily, her hand playing with her lover's damp curls.

Maura's body reacted immediately, and her hips involuntarily arched against her lover's touch. "_I_ think so," she groaned through clenched teeth. "You'd have to decide for yourself. But...you don't have to do anything you're not ready to do," she added tightly.

Jane fought back a grin. It was obvious from the way Maura was gripping the sheets that she was fighting the urge to press the detective's face tightly to her core. "Do you _want_ me to do this for you?" Jane murmured, as her tongue trailed down a trickle of perspiration that ran from the blonde's navel to disappear into the curls between her legs.

Maura nodded her head. "Yes," she answered honestly. "I do. Please…," she begged, her fingers threading their way into the detective's ebony tresses. Gently pushing Jane's head downward, the blonde spread her legs wide, offering herself to her friend. "Please, Jane...please."

As the detective changed positions to settle between her friend's legs, the need in Maura's voice sent shivers up her spine. Shifting slightly closer to the other woman's dripping center, Jane paused for a few seconds, trying to remember everything that Maura had done to her a short while ago. Gathering her resolve, she reached out and used her thumbs to part the other woman's folds. She gazed briefly at the sight of Maura's sex laid out before her, before finally leaning in and allowing her tongue to trace lightly through the blonde's wet labia. A deep-throated moan of pleasure from the other woman served to encourage her efforts, and Jane thrust her tongue deeper into the medical examiner's soaked core, relishing the taste and scent of her friend.

Maura's hips took on a life of their own, as Jane's tongue carried out a relentless dance across her sensitive flesh. The detective dragged her tongue all the way up to the blonde's swollen clit and then dragged it back down to circle and probe the medical examiner's pulsating opening. Again and again she repeated this action, causing Maura's entire body to tremble in response.

The medical examiner's movements eventually began to grow more and more frantic. Jane knew that her friend wouldn't last much longer, so on her next pass up, she placed her lips over the blonde's clit and began to suck forcefully. Groaning loudly, Maura released her grip on her friend's hair and grabbed the sheets covering the bed instead. Shudders of delight rippled through her, every muscle in her body tensing in anticipation. The blonde strained her hips upward, desperately seeking release from the intensity of the sensations sweeping through her. Recognizing that the other woman had reached her limit, Jane moved down and started driving her tongue deep inside of her friend. The effect on the medical examiner was instantaneous. With a broken sob, Maura's hips lifted off the bed and she ground herself against Jane's mouth, her body going rigid as she came loud and long.

Jane watched in awe as the blonde's release swept through her. She lapped and sucked eagerly at the flood of wetness that spilled out onto her tongue, and long moments after Maura's spasms had ended and she'd fallen back onto the bed, the brunette continued to lightly lick and caress the other woman. Finally, Jane propped herself up on her elbows to look up at the medical examiner's flushed face, a satisfied grin on her own.

Taking a deep breath, Maura opened her eyes and gazed at her friend, her expression one of pure and utter joy. "Proud of yourself?" she asked with a weak smile.

In response, Jane leaned forward to nuzzle Maura's soaked curls, taking care to maintain eye contact as she did so. She flicked her tongue out over the medical examiner's still hypersensitive clit, causing the blonde to inhale sharply as her body arched and stiffened. Jane waited patiently until the other woman was able to make eye contact with her again, and then smirked up at her friend. "Actually, yeah, I am," the detective said, as she placed her palm gently on the blonde's warm center.

Several seconds passed before Maura was able to speak. "Come here," she said softly, extending her hand to the brunette.

Jane immediately slid up to lie beside her friend. Rolling onto her back, she gathered Maura into her arms so that the medical examiner's head was once again resting on her shoulder. She pressed her cheek against Maura's hair and then closed her eyes, feeling warm and more content than could ever remember.

Several minutes passed in silence, and eventually Jane realized that Maura had fallen asleep in her arms. The detective could feel her body demanding that she give in to the need for sleep as well, but she stubbornly fought to stay awake. She had just made love to the woman that she was in love with, and now she was holding that woman in her arms. And while it was true that she still hadn't managed to summon up the courage to tell Maura how she felt, right now, Jane didn't care. Maura had said that she wanted them to experience something they would never forget, and Jane knew that at least where she was concerned, that was exactly what had happened. For the rest of her life, Jane would have this moment to remember, and she was determined to enjoy every last possible second of it for as long as she could.

* * *

**AN part 2: For those wondering, there are three chapters left to go in the story. I don't expect the next chapter to take anywhere as long as this one did to write. Also, there's still some "I Never" statements yet to come, but I didn't want the game to be a part of this particular chapter.**


	6. Chapter 6

**AN: Sorry about the delay, just you know, life. Thanks to all who took the time to review the last chapter. Hearing that people are digging the story makes it all worthwhile.**

* * *

The first thing Maura was aware of, as she slowly returned to wakefulness, was an overwhelming feeling of contentment. Sex with Jane had been a revelation. The blonde couldn't remember a time when she had felt so in sync with and completely fulfilled by a partner. Apparently the poets were right: there was a difference between having sex with someone to whom you were merely attracted, and having sex with someone with whom you were actually in love.

Love. The word wrapped around Maura's heart, warming her to the core. She was heels over head in love with Jane Rizzoli, even if she still lacked the courage to tell the other woman about her feelings. Pushing that thought aside, Maura instead chose to focus on what she had been able to do. She had finally, _finally,_ confessed to Jane that she was attracted to her, and the results of that confession had been more than she could have possibly hoped for. Maura had long suspected that beneath Jane's quiet, sometimes shy demeanor lurked intense, hidden desires, but the reality had surpassed anything the medical examiner could have ever dreamed of. Jane had proven herself to be an attentive, sensuous, and deeply passionate lover, and Maura could only imagine how incredible things would be between them once they had time to become intimately familiar with each other's likes and dislikes.

As thoughts of Jane and the things they had done together just a short while ago filled her mind, a delicious shudder rippled through Maura's body. Eyes still closed, she rolled over and reached out for the other woman, wanting to feel Jane's body against her own. Her hand, however, encountered nothing more than cold, empty sheets.

Maura's eyes snapped open, allowing her sense of sight to confirm what her sense of touch had already told her. Jane was no longer in bed with her. She paused for a moment, listening intently, but heard nothing. "Jane?" she finally called out, hoping that the detective was in the en suite bathroom.

Silence.

A distinct uneasiness settled over the medical examiner. The glowing digits of the alarm clock indicated that it was just after 3:00 AM. The lack of any warmth from Jane's side of the mattress told the blonde that a significant amount of time had passed since the detective had left her bed. Maura struggled to fight down her sudden fears, but the nagging in the back of her mind refused to be stilled. Jane had been an enthusiastic participant in their earlier activities, but Maura knew her friend well enough to know that, given the opportunity to think things over after the fact, the detective was more than capable of coming up with all kinds of reasons to feel guilty and second guess what they had done.

Maura turned on the lamp on her bedside table and looked around the room. Seeing Jane's pants and shoes lying on the floor, she felt her nervousness ease slightly. If nothing else, she knew the detective hadn't actually left her home if those two items of clothing were still here. Quickly rising from the bed, Maura retrieved her robe from the closet and slipped it on. She knew she was probably being ridiculous, but the idea that Jane could be regretting what they had done still weaved an unsettling path through her brain. Maura needed to find the other woman and reassure herself that everything was still alright between them.

Maura walked quietly down the stairs and through the short hallway to the doorway leading to the main room on the first floor. She paused for a moment to scan the room, and felt a wave of relief wash over her when she saw the shadowy outline of the detective sitting on the couch in her living room. "Jane?" she asked softly, as she flipped on a light in the kitchen.

The brunette turned around to face her friend. "Maura?" she asked, a note of surprise in her voice. "What are you doing up?"

Maura walked over to stand behind the couch. "I was worried when I woke up and you were gone. What are you doing down here?"

"I was thirsty, so I came down to get some water," Jane replied contritely, holding up her empty glass. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to worry you."

Maura refrained from pointing out that, even assuming Jane's explanation for why she had come downstairs was completely true, it didn't explain why the detective had _remained_ downstairs instead of going back up to rejoin the medical examiner in bed. A long, awkward silence stretched between the two women, while Maura waited patiently for her friend to explain why she was sitting alone in the dark. Eventually, though, the blonde realized that Jane wasn't going to volunteer any further information. Maura moved around to the front of the couch and looked at her friend. The detective was wearing the shirt she had had on earlier but hadn't bothered to fasten any of the buttons, allowing Maura to see that she was wearing underwear and her shirt and nothing else. At any other time, such a sight would have filled Maura with intense desire and caused her pulse to race. At the moment, though, she was too concerned about Jane's strange behavior to give it more than a passing thought.

Maura sat down beside the detective. "Is everything alright?" the blonde asked. It was, she knew, a ridiculous question. It was patently obvious that Jane would not be sitting on her couch in the dark, holding an empty glass if everything was "alright," but Maura couldn't think of anything else to say.

Several moments passed, while Jane focused her attention on the glass in her hands. Finally she lifted her head, but rather than actually looking at Maura, she instead stared off slightly to the blonde's right. "Earlier…when we were…you know," she began, clearly uncomfortable with the topic. "Was that just the way things usually are with two women?"

Maura frowned slightly, not entirely certain where Jane was coming from with the question. The detective hadn't seemed particularly surprised by the things they had done together, and Maura couldn't think of anything that Jane would have expected to happen that didn't, at least as far as a first time encounter was concerned. "I don't know that there is any 'usual way' for sex to take place between two women," Maura replied slowly, trying to figure out exactly what it was that Jane was getting at. "But I wouldn't say that there was anything 'unusual' about it."

The medical examiner was surprised to see a flash of what appeared to be disappointment cross her friend's face. Before she could look closer, however, Jane lowered her head, causing her hair to fall forward, effectively shielding her features from the blonde. "So that was…normal for you?"

'_Normal for you?_' A sickening feeling of freefall hit Maura just below her stomach, and she momentarily found herself at a loss for how to respond. She had been worried that Jane might be anxious about going too far, too fast, and would throw up walls between them. This, however, went far beyond the blonde's worst fears. Jane was apparently not only having second thoughts about crossing the line between best friends and lovers, she was questioning the entire "morality" of what they done. The medical examiner had no idea what she would do if Jane managed to convince herself that what they had done was perverted and sinful. Not only would it mean an end to them as lovers, it could very well mean an end to their friendship as well.

"Normal can be a rather subjective term, Jane," the medical examiner said, choosing her words carefully, desperately trying to find a way to reassure her friend that everything was alright before these disturbing thoughts had a chance to solidify permanently in the detective's mind. "What's normal for one person may be…objectionable to someone else, but that doesn't mean that it's wrong or that there's anything to be ashamed of."

For the first time since Maura had joined the brunette on the couch, Jane looked directly at the medical examiner. Her brow was furrowed deeply, and Maura could see the confusion on the other woman's face. "What are you talking about?"

"I'm talking about when we had intercourse earlier," Maura replied, doing her best to keep her tone even.

"God, Maura," the detective groaned, "Could you at least say…wait what?" Jane's eyes narrowed as she twisted around so that she was facing Maura. "Are you saying I did something '_objectionable'_ when we were having sex?"

"No, of course not," Maura immediately denied.

"Then why would you even bring that up?" Jane demanded, obviously not believing the blonde's answer.

"Because you feel guilty that you enjoyed sex with a woman," Maura explained, using every last bit of self-control she possessed to hide how much it hurt to say those words out loud. "And now–"

"Stop!" Jane said emphatically, holding up her hand. "How the hell did you come up with the idea that I feel guilty about having sex with you?"

"You're avoiding coming back to bed with me," Maura pointed out. "And you asked me if the things we did were 'normal.'" She waited a few moments for Jane to deny the facts she'd laid out, but the detective simply stared at her in silence. Taking the other woman's lack of a response as confirmation, the medical examiner lowered her head and tried to ignore the ache that had settled just behind her heart. "I don't want to lose your friendship, Jane, so I'll understand if you tell me that you made a mistake and you've changed your mind. No one needs to know about this. I know you've always been uncomfortable with the idea of people thinking you could be gay."

Slowly and deliberately, the detective placed her glass on the desk behind the couch. "So let me get this straight," Jane said quietly. "You think I'm having second thoughts about us, that I'm ashamed of having sex with you, and that I'm worried people are going to think I'm gay now that we've slept together?"

Maura lifted her head to look at her friend. "Aren't you?"

The brunette shook her head slowly, a dumbfounded expression on her face. Finally, she reached out and caught Maura by the arm so that she could draw the medical examiner into her embrace. "God, woman," she muttered, her voice an almost perfect mix of exasperation and amusement. "No wonder you never guess. You're terrible at it!"

Maura felt a surge of hope rush through her. She pulled away just far enough to look at her friend. Her heart swelled when she saw the brunette's affectionate, albeit bemused grin. "Jane–"

"Shhh," the detective said in a hushed voice, placing a finger against the blonde's lips. "Just let me talk for a minute, ok?"

Jane paused to make certain that she had Maura's undivided attention before continuing. "I'm not ashamed of what happened between us tonight. I'm not having second thoughts and I'm not worried about what other people might think about me." The brunette reached up and gently smoothed back a wisp of hair that was clinging to the medical examiner's cheek, her eyes filled with tenderness. "I know in the past I wasn't comfortable with the idea of people thinking I might be gay, but honestly, I don't give a damn about that anymore."

Maura felt as if an enormous weight had been lifted from her shoulders. She exhaled in relief and then rested her head on Jane's shoulder. "I thought you were going to tell me you regretted being with me," she confessed.

Jane shook her head and pressed a kiss against Maura's hair. "God no. I could never regret that."

Maura leaned back to look at the detective. "Then why did you ask me if what we did was 'normal'?"

Jane grimaced in response to the question. "Ok, I obviously shouldn't have used the word 'normal.' Maybe 'typical' would have been better."

"Alright, but why did you want to know if what we did was typical? Was there something you wanted me to do for you that I didn't do?"

"No, of course not," Jane said. "Everything was perfect. Look, I was being dumb, so just forget I said anything about this, ok?" Jane pushed herself up from the couch and extended her hand to her friend. "Let's go back upstairs and I'll prove to you just how much I don't regret what we did earlier," Jane said, her voice deep and sinfully rich.

Maura felt her insides clench in response to the desire she could see on the other woman's face. The medical examiner knew her friend well enough to recognize a deflection when she saw one, though, so despite the fact that she would have loved nothing more than to take the detective up on her proposition, she shook her head and remained seated. "Jane," she coaxed, reaching out to take the detective's right hand in her own so that she could pull the brunette back down onto the couch beside her. "You were sitting down here alone in the dark because something was bothering you. Don't make me guess. We just saw how well that works," she pointed out wryly. Seeing the other woman getting ready to protest and pull away, Maura tightened her grip and hurriedly continued. "Please," she said, her thumb moving lightly across the back of the detective's hand. "Talk to me. Tell me why you wanted to know if what we did was 'typical.'"

The detective rubbed her temples. "I wasn't asking about what we did. I was asking about the way things felt." Seeing the perplexed expression on Maura's face, Jane ran her fingers through her hair and sighed. "It's just…what happened between us…sex isn't usually like that for me. Which I know sounds stupid because I've never been with a woman before, so of course it's not usually like that for me, but that's not what I'm not talking about."

Jane lowered her head, trying to organize her disjointed thoughts. "I've always felt like I was just going through the motions whenever I was with someone. But tonight everything was…different. I actually felt…connected and…and for once everything just felt…right…and I don't think that was because I was with a woman." Jane lifted her head slowly. "I think it was because I was with _you,_" she said, her voice rough with barely suppressed emotions. The detective shrugged her shoulders, and then looked away, obviously embarrassed. "Being with you was…special. I guess I just wanted to think I wasn't the only one who felt that way."

Maura swallowed to get past the tightness in her throat. Jane's honest, rambling confession had touched her deeply, and for a moment, she could only stare at her friend in amazement. Maura reached out to trail her fingers along the detective's jaw, before cupping her chin and turning it so that she could look into the brunette's eyes. "It wasn't just you. Tonight was special for me too."

"Really?" Jane asked hopefully.

Maura moved forward until her lips were a mere fraction from the other woman's. "Really," she confirmed, before capturing Jane's lips with a soft kiss.

After a few seconds, Maura reluctantly pulled away again. Part of her wanted to tell Jane just how completely in love with her she was, but almost immediately, her fears and insecurities rose up to stop her. Instead, she decided to concentrate on simply reassuring the detective that her feelings weren't one-sided, and that Maura had been just as affected by what had transpired between them as had the brunette.

"I know what it's like to feel…detached when you're with a lover," the medical examiner admitted. "The truth is that most of the time, sex for me has just been about finding physical release, not making an emotional connection. But tonight with you was beyond anything I could have imagined. You absolutely took my breath away, Jane. I've never been with anyone who made me feel as incredible as the way you made me feel tonight."

Jane began to reply, then paused when the medical examiner's words registered with her. A slow smile began to appear on the detective's face, and after a moment, Maura mirrored her reaction as she realized what she had said. Jane took the medical examiner's hand in her own and laced her fingers with Maura's. "Neither have I," Jane husked.

Maura leaned in and covered Jane's mouth with her own. Her lips moved against the brunette's slowly, devouring their softness, until they parted beneath hers. The medical examiner wasted no time in accepting the unspoken invitation. She tasted Jane's mouth, moaning softly at the full heady sweetness of her, and engaged the detective's tongue in a gentle battle that was playful and teasing.

Eventually, reluctantly, Maura eased back from her friend. She felt herself tingle all over when she saw the desire burning hot and bright in Jane's eyes. "Damn, you're really good at that," the detective said breathlessly.

Maura laughed lightly. "So are you." She rose from the couch and then reached out to take Jane's hands. "I believe you said something a few minutes ago about going upstairs and proving something to me," she said with an enticing grin.

To Maura's surprise, this time it was Jane who shook her head and resisted the attempt to be led upstairs. "I need to ask you something first."

Maura frowned, not understanding the other woman's reluctance to join her. "What's wrong?"

Jane carefully pulled the medical examiner back down so that Maura was straddling her lap and facing her. "I know I didn't do the best job expressing myself when we first started talking, so I kind of understand why you thought I was freaking out. But it's not like you to instantly jump to conclusions like that."

"I know," Maura said with an apologetic shrug. "I was wrong to make an assumption like that without getting all the facts first."

Jane cocked her head to the side and studied her friend thoughtfully. "You were worried that I'd changed my mind about us even before you came downstairs, weren't you?"

"A little," Maura admitted, knowing it would be useless to deny it. The inevitable hives would give her away anyway.

"But why?" Jane asked, her brow knitted in puzzlement. "Did I give you some reason to doubt how I feel about you?"

"No, you didn't do anything wrong," Maura said quickly, feeling guilty that she had made Jane question herself. "I was worrying about nothing."

Jane brought Maura's right hand to her lips and pressed a kiss against her knuckles. "Don't make me guess," she said softly. "Talk to me."

The medical examiner sighed when she heard Jane using her own words against her. Lowering her eyes, Maura tried to find the words to explain herself to her friend. After a few moments, she realized that there was only one completely truthful answer she could give.

"I was…I am…scared," the blonde confessed.

The detective's arms circled Maura's back, bringing her closer. "Of what?"

"Of losing you now that I finally have you."

Jane chuckled and shook her head. "Not gonna happen."

"You can't know that. You could–"

"I love you," Jane interrupted softly.

Maura's gaze snapped up to meet the detective's. "What?" she rasped.

"I'm in love with you, Maura Dorothea Isles," Jane said softly. "Totally, completely, hopelessly in love with you. I know it's probably way too soon to tell you that, but I can't mmphf–"

The rest of the brunette's words were cut off as Maura crushed her lips against the detective's. The medical examiner's hands plunged into Jane's ebony tresses, holding her tight, as the blonde poured everything she was into the kiss. She felt Jane's tongue dart out to meet her, and she groaned in appreciation as their tongues languidly entwined with each other's.

Eventually, the need for air forced the two women to break apart. Jane pulled Maura to her and held her with immeasurable tenderness. Burying her face in the crook of the detective's neck, Maura breathed in deeply, drawing Jane's scent into her lungs as she tried to calm her racing heartbeat.

"Soooo…not too soon?" Jane quipped after several seconds had passed.

Taking one last breath to steady herself, Maura raised her head to look at her friend. The playful grin on the detective's lips made her automatically smile in return, but the love she could see shining in Jane's eyes caused her breath to catch in her throat. She reached out and stroked the soft skin of Jane's cheek with her fingertips. "I'm in love with you too, Jane…Rizzoli," Maura said, deliberately skipping over the detective's middle name when she saw the brunette's eyebrow shoot up warningly. "Totally, completely, hopelessly in love with you," she continued, punctuating each word with a kiss. "And no, I don't think it's too soon to say it."

Jane dropped a feather light kiss against Maura's forehead, and then placed her hands on the medical examiner's hips and began to lift. "Let's go upstairs," she murmured.

Shaking her head, Maura resisted Jane's efforts to move her from the detective's lap. "What's wrong with right here?" she asked in a low voice, pressing herself provocatively against the detective's body.

Jane inhaled sharply. "The same problem as before," she replied, her tone slightly strained. "My mother walking in on us."

Maura lowered her head and began trailing a line of kisses along the detective's jaw. She smiled when she heard Jane's breathing hitch. The truth was that the medical examiner didn't actually have an objection to going upstairs, but she couldn't resist the opportunity to tease her lover just a bit. "It's the middle of the night. She wouldn't come over now," Maura whispered seductively. "And this couch is _very_ comfortable."

Jane groaned quietly when she felt Maura's hips begin rolling against her. "I'm not worried about _now_," the brunette said hoarsely, as she tightened her grip on the medical examiner's waist and tried to hold her still. "I'm worried about her coming in here tomorrow morning and finding us naked together on this comfortable couch."

Maura nipped lightly at the brunette's ear lobe, causing Jane to shiver. "The door is locked. The security system is set."

"She has a key. She knows the code." Jane closed her eyes and forced herself to push the medical examiner back slightly, creating some desperately needed space between them. "I'll make you a deal," she offered, her breathing ragged, and her face flushed.

Maura clasped her hands behind the detective's neck. She tilted her head slightly to the side and looked at her friend. "I like deals."

Jane smiled, relieved that Maura was willing to be reasonable. "We go upstairs, and I'll do _anything_ you want," she promised in a husky voice.

A throaty laugh fell from Maura's lips. She tangled the fingers of one hand in the curls at the nape of the detective's neck, while she slowly drew the fingers of her other hand down from Jane's throat, between the valley of her breasts, over her flat stomach, until she finally reached the top of the detective's underwear. The blonde allowed her fingers to dance across Jane's skin for a few more moments, and then loosened the belt of her robe, allowing the garment to fall open. "I'm fairly certain I could get you to do anything I want down here too," she said confidently, as she placed her lips against the base of the other woman's throat and began to suck lightly.

The detective's hands clenched into fists against the blonde's hips, as she desperately tried not to give in to her increasing need for her friend. It was obvious, though, that the feeling of Maura's bare breasts moving over her skin was rapidly destroying her remaining resolve. "Maura, please," Jane whimpered.

Recognizing that the brunette was nearly ready to break, Maura took pity on the other woman. She brushed a gentle kiss against the detective's lips. "How about if I make _you_ a deal?" she suggested.

"What?" Jane croaked.

Maura slowly and deliberately straightened up, flexing her shoulders and thrusting her chest forward so that her breasts were completely exposed to Jane's view. The medical examiner bit her lip to keep from smirking when she saw the brunette's eyes glaze over with lust as she stared at Maura's chest. "We go upstairs, and _tomorrow_ we go out on a proper date to the location of my choice."

Jane's gaze flicked up to meet Maura's. "You want to go out on a date?" she asked, clearly surprised by the request.

"I know it's a little backwards," Maura replied, a grin tugging at the corner of her lips, "But all things considered, I think at some point we should go out on at least one date, don't you?"

Jane considered the offer for a moment. Maura could see the relief in her expression when she nodded. "Alright, but no subtitled films," the detective said gruffly.

Maura felt a surge of love rush through her at the adorable sight of Detective Jane Rizzoli making demands, acting as if she were somehow in control of the situation, acting as if Maura didn't have her completely wrapped around her finger at that moment. "No subtitled films, no opera, no karaoke," Maura agreed solemnly. "I promise that all of your 'I never statements' will remain unchanged after the date."

"Other than I've never gone out on a date with a woman before," Jane said as her lips curved into a warm smile.

Maura smiled as well, remember that it was that particular 'I never' statement that had started them down the path to where they were right now. "Other than that one," she agreed softly.

Jane and kissed the blonde lingeringly. "Ok," she agreed. "You've got yourself a date."


End file.
